A Smart Pairing
by Tom A. Felton
Summary: Draco Malfoy was a bully. A prat. A self-absorbed git. Someone who always preyed on the other students with malicious joy. But there was a side to him that no one knew about. A side that cared. About one girl. One that never left his mind. Draco wanted to change. He wanted to become a better person. But would it be possible to change everything he had done and become someone else?
1. The Start Of Fifth Year

**Author's Note:** So this is a story that I decided to start writing because I am a very hard Dramione shipper and also because Draco Malfoy is my absolute favourite Harry Potter character ever. So after writing this, I thought why not publish it. I am at University, and whilst I have a few chapters already written, I can't promise constant updates. I am going on break after this week, and I'll be off for a month for holidays. I will try to get as much writing done as I can, and honestly, that should be a lot because all I ever do is write. But Please, leave comments and reviews, I love to know what people think of my work, whether it be positive or negative. But even if you just read, that is fine, too. I appreciate that you found my story and have decided to indulge in it.

Okay, I've said enough, and I'll let you get started with _A Smart Pairing._

* * *

 **Draco** **Malfoy** sat in one of the compartments on the Hogwarts Express, on his way to his fifth year of academics at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. He leaned his head on his hand, elbow propped up on the table. Letting out a deep breath, his friend, Pansy Parkinson, sat down across from him with Blaise Zabini next to her.

"What is it? You seem off." She asked, but Malfoy shook his head.

"It's...it's nothing." He muttered, his eyes wandering out into the corridor. He sat up a bit when he saw the girl walking down.

Her perfect smile, beautiful brown eyes, and lovely light brown hair. He watched as she walked past, his head turning to follow her. She was so beautiful. Smart, too. The smartest girl in the school.

In their first year, when he had first met her, he discovered that she was as brilliant as they come. They hadn't exactly started off on the right foot, though. But in second year, he had called her that name...that horrid name. _Mudblood_. He had said it with so much hate, so many times.

But then as the year dragged on, he had realized that he regretted it more than anything. He didn't know how he came to that conclusion, but at the end of the year when he saw her get on the train, she never left his mind. And over the summer as well. And every year since then. Every night he would lay back, close his eyes, and the first thing he would see was Hermione Granger.

Draco shook himself back, then dropped his head into his hands with a groan. "Dammit..." He muttered, and Blaise rose his eyebrow.

"What is it, mate?" He wondered, reaching out his hand, but Draco stood up quickly, shaking his head.

"I...I need to do something. I...I'll be back soon." He said, and the two other Slytherins looked at each other, then back up to Draco.

Blaise nodded. "Sure...We'll be here." He confirmed, and Draco nodded. Turning around, he turned down the corridor, pushing past people as he kept his head straight on his plan.

* * *

 **Hermione** **Granger** turned into one of the empty compartments in the train, sighing as she pulled a book from her bag, opening it to where her mark was, about fifty pages in. She sat back, a slight smile crossing her face, then a throat cleared made her look up.

Her eyes widened when she saw the tall blonde staring at her, his grey eyes meeting hers. He sported a nervous frown, then bit his lip.

"Granger...I...how are you?" He asked slowly, making Hermione's curiosity grow, as did her suspicion. Draco Malfoy was being _nice_ to her? She closed her book, then took a breath.

"Malfoy. I'm well, thank you. How was your summer?" She asked, and Draco shrugged, slipping up on his words.

"It was...I mean...I didn't really...It was fine, I guess." He finally stated, and Hermione's look of confusion intensified, then she cocked her head.

"What...what are you doing here?" She asked, and before Draco could stop himself the witty retort came forth.

"Well, I go to school here same as you."

His heart stopped as he realized just how harsh he had said it, and his chest grew tight as Hermione narrowed her eyes.

"Why are you bothering me, Malfoy? Don't you have your own little plans to hatch up with your _friends_?" She quipped, and Draco opened his mouth to say something, but Hermione whipped out her wand, flicked it, and the door slid shut, the lock clicking. Immediately she buried her nose back in her book, not looking up again.

Draco stood there for a moment as more people pushed past him, thinking nothing of the boy. Draco gritted his teeth, then he slammed his fist against the wall of the corridor.

"Bollocks!" He growled, making a few of the younger students' eyes widen, and some of the older ones, his own year, staring at him with curiosity and caution.

Draco spun around and stalked back towards his own seat, where he unceremoniously fell back with a huff, staring out the window angrily.

Blaise raised his eyebrow. "Draco, are you okay-"

Draco's eyes bore into him with fire as he glared. "Shut up, Blaise." He growled, making both Blaise and Pansy's eyes go wide. He turned to stare back out the window, silently cursing at himself for making such a foolish mistake.

* * *

The rest of the train ride was quiet for both of them, but Hermione couldn't focus. She, only moments after Malfoy had left her car, had put down her book and sighed. She frowned, thankful that neither Harry nor Ron were here to see her in a state of such confusion.

She was surprised that Malfoy had actually confronted her. He had seemed so nice about it too. Almost as if he had wanted to have a civil conversation at first. But then that witty smart ass of his resurfaced, and she had turned him out.

But there was one thing that she could not erase from her thoughts. His eyes. They were beautifully grey, like a storm cloud, and they were sincere. She had never seen them so kind in the five years she had known him. He also seemed nervous, and as soon as he had made that retort, he seemed to have regretted it.

Was he really trying to be nice to her?

Hermione shook her head, opening her book again, but as she looked at the page, she began to see the word "Malfoy" spotting the pages. She squeezed her eyes shut, shaking her head.

'Get it together, Hermione.' She told herself, but all she could picture was that smug grin and those grey eyes and that blonde hair.

Draco Malfoy. Something was different about him this year... And she liked it.

* * *

When the train reached the station, Draco stood up, brushing his hair back with his fingers. Letting out a deep breath, he walked down the corridor then stepped down to the platform, glancing to the side. Then he froze when he saw her walking, alone, down towards the carriages.

Biting his lip, he glanced behind him, then ran down towards her, hearing Blaise and Pansy's shouts behind him. He ignored them. Catching up to her, he turned down the path where the carriages were boarded and saw her standing alone, looking down at a book. He took a deep breath, then slowly walked over.

"Granger?"

She spun around so fast, eyes wide, that Draco stumbled back a bit, throwing his hands up in surrender. Hermione then let her shoulders drop, her eyes turning irritated.

"Malfoy. What do you want?" She asked coldly, and Draco opened his mouth to say something, then bit his lip. Rubbing the back of his head, he glanced at the carriage pulling up. He took a breath, then met Hermione's eyes.

"May I...may I join you?" He asked slowly, and Hermione's eyebrow raised, her eyes softening, then she sighed.

"If you must."

The two got into the carriage, and Draco looked behind to see if his friends were there to arouse suspicion, but thankfully they weren't in view. He turned his head back to Hermione, who had already reopened her book.

Draco frowned, then leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees. "Granger."

Hermione looked up, not raising her head, her eyes growing more impatient. "What?" She asked in a rather unfriendly tone. Draco met her eye, shaking his head.

"I'm sorry about what I said on the train. I didn't mean for it to come off so harsh." He apologised, and Hermione's eyes went wide. She immediately closed her book and gave Draco a curious stare.

"You're apologising? _You_?!" She exclaimed, and Draco threw his hands up in the air, falling back against the railing with a hard sigh.

"Why is it that when I try to be kind people do that?!" He groaned, and Hermione frowned, biting her lip. She leaned forward a little.

"Malfoy, I...I didn't mean it like that," she started, but Draco scoffed, shaking his head.

"Yes, you did. No one trusts me. No one takes me seriously." He then turned his head aside. "But who could blame them, huh?" He muttered.

Hermione stared at him curiously. She had never seen this side of Draco Malfoy before. He seemed...pained, confused. Like he didn't know what was what. And he had tried to be...kind? Hermione shook her head, then leaned forward again.

"Malfoy, I'm sorry that I came off like that. It's just..." She hesitated, then Draco sat back up.

"I haven't exactly been kind to you or your friends in the past, so you're sceptical." He finished, nodding. "Yeah. I get it." He said sadly, but then he shook his head. "I just...I want to try to actually step away from my family's name, you know? Not be branded as a cruel, dignified prat for once. Just once I'd like to have someone look at me and _not_ see me as a Malfoy. But as Draco. A different boy." He muttered quietly, and Hermione stared at him with wide, sympathetic eyes.

"Malfoy... I never knew you felt that way. You just always acted like such an insufferable git that I didn't really know what else to expect." She softly said, and Draco looked up with a sigh.

"Granger, I just want to have a normal school year, one where I don't hang around bullying people, one where I'm not seen as a twat, and one where I can just be me." He voiced, and Hermione sat forward.

She put her hand on Draco's knee, meeting his eyes. "There's no one stopping you from doing that, Malfoy." She stated, and Malfoy just stared at her, then his lips curled up in a grin.

He bit his lip, then dropped his head a bit. "Listen. Can...can we maybe...I mean, do you think... I...I just want to say..." He stuttered, and Hermione raised her eyebrow, then the carriage stopped, the two looking up to see Hogwarts looming above them. Hermione caught Draco's gaze one last time, then hopped out of the carriage.

"Goodbye, Malfoy. I hope to see you at the feast." She said, and Draco jumped out, reaching after her, about to open his mouth to say something, but Hermione was already walking off. He let out a deep breath, shoulders dropping as he fell back against the carriage.

"Damn..." He watched as she walked away, then sighed sadly. "I just want to say... I love you..."

* * *

In the Great Hall at the Slytherin table sat Blaise Zabini and Pansy Parkinson, not eating but instead looking around. They were both thinking the same thing; where their best friend was. Draco hadn't immediately come to the Feast, and they hadn't seen him since he ran off from the platform.

Blaise shook his head. "Pans, I don't like this. It's not like him to just not show up. Especially to the feast. And the way he was acting earlier?" He said, and Pansy nodded, leaning her chin on her hand, elbow propped on the table.

"I know. But I have a feeling he's okay. He's _Draco_ , Blaise. He can take care of himself." She pointed out. Just as she said those words, she looked up to see the pale, blonde-haired boy walking into the Hall, shoulders drooped and sad, not his usual stuck up and proud manner. He slowly walked over, then slid quietly into the bench, leaning his arm on the table and sighing. He never met his friends' eyes, just stared down at the ring on his hand.

Blaise leaned forward, touching Draco's shoulder lightly. "Mate, are you okay?" He asked softly. "You haven't really seemed like yourself today. Not on the train and not now. What's going on?"

Draco shook his head, still not meeting his friend's eyes. "Nothing, Blaise. I'm...I'm fine." He murmured, then turned away.

Draco slowly lifted his head, staring over at the Gryffindor table, searching. He immediately picked out those beautiful brown locks and the girl they belonged to. She sat with Potter and Weaselby, laughing. Draco's throat closed up, then he shut his eyes, shaking his head.

He had to tell her. He had to tell her at some point. Keeping it in? It was killing him. He couldn't repress those feelings much longer.

The only problem was, how was he going to tell her that he loved her?

After the Great Feast was over, Draco immediately went back to the Slytherin common room, walking up to his dorm. Letting out a deep sigh as he shrugged his robes off and hung them on the hook next to his post, he sat down on the edge of his bed, tugging at his tie to loosen it. Closing his eyes, he leaned his arms on his legs, hanging his head.

What was he doing? He was in love with Hermione Granger! But how could she ever love him? All the times he had mistreated her, called her names...

He flinched as he remembered one specific name that had constantly seemed to resonate from his mouth towards her. _Mudblood_.

The stab of pain hit him as he knew how foul that term was. He had learned it from his father at a young age, and he saw now just how wrong it was that he had used it at the age of twelve, let alone at all. He had been brought up in such a way that it was almost drilled into his brain to be a right foul git. And at this point, he couldn't blame a single person for thinking that of him. He just wished that he could change it all.

Rubbing his face with his hands, he put his palms on the back of his head as it hung down, elbows on his knees.

"Are you alright, mate?"

The voice made him startle so much that when he jolted up he whacked his head into the post of his bed. He fell back, groaning, tenderly rubbing his head. Blaise stood with wide eyes.

"Damn! Sorry, mate!" He sat down across from Draco, biting his lip. He looked at Draco, still laid back on his bed, now staring up at the curtains with a blank expression. Blaise frowned and leaned forward.

"Draco, what is it? And I swear, if you say 'nothing' again, I'll throw you out onto the Quidditch pitch to use as Bludger practice." He threatened, and Draco let out a loud sigh, then propped himself up on his elbows.

"I'm just...I'm tired of being seen as the bad guy, Blaise. Every year, everywhere, everyone always sees me, a Malfoy, as a pretentious self-righteous git. I hate it!" He exclaimed, then he shook his head. "I just want to have _one_ year, **one** **year** , where I can be seen as someone other than who I'm expected to be."

Blaise raised his eyebrow. "Who you're expected to be?..."

Draco groaned. "A _Malfoy_." Shaking his head, he fell back with a hard breath. "I don't want to be branded with that name anymore. All it's done for me in the past is give me an absolutely horrid reputation, and honestly, how my father raised me, it turned me into a right bloody twat, didn't it?" He remarked, and before Blaise could react, Draco went on.

"I...I was raised under the impression that anyone who doesn't come from a pureblood family is less worthy, or not at all worthy, to be a wizard. That they were scum. And anyone who wasn't exactly like _my_ family, a rich and well sophisticated and dignified line, they were also lesser beings. So since first year, I always beat up on anyone like that, but especially Potter, Weaselby and Granger. They seemed to get the brunt of it all." He muttered, and Blaise then looked confused.

"But...but you hate those three. You hate all Gryffindors-"

"But do I _really_ , Blaise?! I don't think I do! I think that it might just be my father's ideals rubbing off on me!" He shouted, pushing himself up to a sitting position. His eyes were full of emotion, some anger and some pain, confusion and suffering.

His friend just stared at him silently for a moment, then shook his head slowly. "Draco, where is this coming from?" He asked, but Draco shook his head.

"N...Never mind that. I just want to ask you: Do _you_ really think that we should be treating them the way we are?" He wondered, then he met Blaise's eyes seriously. "Be. Truthful." He ordered.

Blaise just sat there for a moment, unsure of what even to say. Then he really started to think about it, and Draco watched as his expression slowly turned to that of guilt and angst.

"I...no. No, we shouldn't." He finally let out, and Draco nodded solemnly. Blaise then frowned, glancing to the side.

"But..." He raised his gaze. "Why _are_ you thinking about this _now?_ Our fifth year has _just_ started, and you already have some sort of crisis going on in your head." He stated, then Draco's eyes grew angered.

"First off, it's not some sort of 'crisis'! And secondly, I told you that it doesn't matter why I'm thinking about it! Just drop it!" He shouted, turning around to lay down on his bed, facing away from Blaise.

"Just...go back to the common room. I'm going to bed." He stated harshly. A tense silence followed, then Draco heard footsteps leaving the room, then the door slam behind them. He closed his eyes as he pulled the blanket close, gripping it tight as he felt tears in his eyes.

No one could ever know about his feelings for Hermione. What if his father ever found out? And what would the Slytherins think of him if Blaise told them how Draco thought that it was wrong to act this way. He had no answers and no idea what this year would bring. But just from this first day, he could tell that it was going to be a rough start.

With that troubling thought floating in his head, he managed to drift off into an uneasy and restless sleep.


	2. Studies

**Author's Note:** This is kind of random, but the reason I love the Dramione fandom so much is because I love the idea of the two smartest students being together. A lot of people seem to forget that Draco was actually one of the smartest students at Hogwarts. Also, Tom Felton, the actor who played Draco Malfoy, ships Dramione himself. Emma Watson (Granger) admitted that Tom Felton was her first on-set crush, and then admitted after the last movie came out that her twelve-year-old self would have wanted a kiss from Tom Felton. (If you don't believe me, it's in an interview. Look it up.) The two are so perfect for each other in Hogwarts and in the real world, so I just adore the pairing.

* * *

 **The day after** the feast, Draco had been sitting in the library with his head dropped on a book, eyes closed, when he heard a soft voice next to him.

"Malfoy?"

He sighed, then lifted his head, slowly opening his eyes, then they fully shot open when he saw the beautiful girl in front of him, holding her books tightly in her arms. She met his eyes, and Draco could see the mixed emotions in them.

Sitting up, he tried to formulate the words in his head before he slipped up on them again.

"Granger...What are you doing here?" He asked curiously, and the girl glanced to the side, shrugging her shoulders.

"I...I needed to ask you something." She said, and Draco sat forward in anticipation.

"Ask away."

She sighed, then licked her lip, turning her gaze back to him. "Did you really mean what you said in the carriage? That you want this year to be different, and not everyone to see you as what you've been in the past?" She then frowned. "In short, you don't want to be seen as an insufferable git?" She asked, and Draco ignored the stab of pain those last two words provided, then he nodded.

"I did. I _do._ I want this year to be different, Granger. I...I'm going to try to be a better person." He declared.

Hermione stepped towards him, then put her books down on the table next to him. "Then I'm going to help you."

Draco's face immediately morphed to confusion. "What?"

"I said I'm going to help you, Malfoy," Hermione repeated. "We can study together, and, honestly, spending time away from your 'buddies' would do you some good." She suggested, and Draco chuckled, a small grin appearing on his face.

"You're too kind for your own good, Granger." Then a frown started to return. "But, I have to wonder...why _are_ you helping me? A Slytherin boy, let alone the one who has given you and your friends so much trouble in the past."

Draco hung his head, turning his gaze away.

"Specifically you. What I've called you, mocked you, what I've done...how can you even look at me?" He muttered, then he felt a hand on his shoulder. Looking up, he saw those beautiful brown eyes meeting his.

"Malfoy, I know that you've had a lot of flaws in the past. But that was your father's doing. It wasn't your fault that you were raised that way. No one deserves that. So I'm willing to give you a second chance." She gave him a smile, then sat back.

"I thought we could start studying together. We have quite a few courses together, and I just figured-"

"I'd like that. I...I think we'd be great student pair, with our brains put together." Draco said, and Hermione nodded. She pushed her books over as she sat down, scooting her chair in. Looking up at Draco, she raised her eyebrow.

"What subject are you best in?" She asked, and Draco rolled his eyes with a smirk.

"Come on, Granger. You know the answer to that question." He remarked, and Hermione frowned with a huff.

"Well, excuse _me_ , Mr Potions Master! I was just checking!" She stated indignantly, and Draco laughed.

"So you do know. That's great. Now, why do you want to know more about Potions? What's your best class?" He asked, and Hermione sighed.

"Either Transfiguration or History of Magic. But...I could use some Potions help..." She dropped her head with a sigh, shaking her head. "I never thought I'd actually admit to that." She muttered.

A smirk crept onto Draco's face, then he pulled out his Potions book. "What do you want to know?" He asked, opening it and flipping through the pages. Hermione was astounded when she saw the many notes and countings and concoctions scribbled in the margins and underlined on every page. Certain ingredients had been circled, some had been crossed out, others had lines drawn to side comments. Mathematical calculations spotted the pages, the precise measurements repeated and checked multiple times.

Hermione's eyes were wide, and Draco raised his eyebrow.

"What?"

The Gryffindor girl shook her head slowly. "Your note taking is incredible! You've written out everything you need to know to have it right at your fingertips! And your equations! The amazing precision and perfect execution of any of these potions would perfectly create whatever you wanted!" She exclaimed, making Draco's face flush.

He shrugged. "It's always been a fascination of mine. Potions was something that interested me since first year, and I found that I had quite a knack for it. So I started working harder at it, and soon I was top of the class by a mile, then not long after found myself in Advanced Potions. It's the one thing I'm good at." He said modestly, looking down at the old, worn, yellowed pages of his Potions book. He then smirked. "But I do enjoy it ever so much. It's a great feeling to be able to not only know spells but to be able to perfectly brew up a potion in no time flat. I guess it makes you feel smarter."

Biting his lip, the joy faded from his face. "Makes you feel less weak."

Hermione felt a tightness grow in her chest when she saw the pain that Malfoy had. Did he truly feel this way? She had never even glimpsed this side of him before, in all the five years she had known him. Reaching her hand out, she put it on his arm.

"Malfoy, you know, it's okay to feel weak sometimes. It's only human. We all have our own flaws, and the only way to get past them is to work through them." She said kindly, and Draco stared at her for a moment, then smiled.

"You're right, Granger. You truly are bright, not just in academics." He then turned back to his potions book, flipping through it. "Okay, there are a few tough potions that I could help you with. There's Draught of Living Death, which can be a bit complicated in parts. Veritaserum is extremely useful-"

Hermione held up her hand, shaking her head. "That's banned in the school. It's illegal!" She stated, and Draco rolled his eyes.

"Okay, true, but Professor Snape taught me that it's good to know how to make it. Just in case you ever need it." He responded, but Hermione raised her eyebrow.

"When would you ever need it?!"

"How about when you're trying to get answers out of someone that you really need, and it could change the entire chain of events?!"

Hermione frowned, then Draco let out a hard breath.

"ANYWAY, Wolfsbane Potion is also handy, but the most difficult one to make is Polyjuice Potion."

He then turned to Hermione with a raised eyebrow. "Although I seem to remember _you_ managed to make it in second year. And used it against _me_ to get Potter and Weaselby into the Slytherin Common Room?" He asked with a defining smirk, and Hermione's face went red. Draco chuckled.

"So I guess you don't need to be taught how to make that one. You did it fairly well last time." He took another look at his book, then tapped his finger on the page. "There's Felix Felicis, Confusing Concoction, Draught of Peace, Hiccoughing Potion, Pepperup Potion, Skele-Gro, Blood-Replenishing Potion, Bloodroot Potion, Death Potion," he flicked his eyebrows up at the last mentioned, catching Granger's eye. "There's Drink of Despair, Elixer of Life, Essence of Insanity, Weedosoros, Sleekeazy's Hair Potion, and..."

He stopped, biting his lip. Hermione tilted her head.

"What?"

Draco rubbed the back of his head. "There's Amortentia. The strongest love potion in the world." He said, trying to refrain from his voice cracking. Hermione, thankfully, didn't notice it and raised her eyebrow.

"Is that a very complicated potion?" She asked, and Draco shrugged.

"If you know how to do it, it works perfectly. If not, well, there's a lot of things that can go wrong. Some minor, some major." He explained, and Hermione raised her eyebrow.

"Like what, exactly?..." She asked cautiously, and Draco leaned his elbow on the table.

"Well, in minor cases, the cauldron has just been known to explode. I heard Seamus Finnigan is pretty apt at those kinds of things, so best not let him anywhere near this." He remarked with a small smirk, then continued after Hermione hit him.

"In the major case, there were a few times where the potion was made improperly and actually caused the intended drinker to hate the person who gave them the potion rather than love them."

Draco sighed. "But that's about it. Either it works or it doesn't. Not that hard." He then looked up at Hermione.

"So...um...what would you be teaching me?" He wondered casually, and Hermione grabbed one of her many textbooks and laid it out.

"I've noticed recently that you have a bit of a hard time in Transfiguration, so I thought I'd help you with that." She offered, and Draco bit his lip, then nodded. Hermione pointed to her textbook, flipping through the pages quickly. Draco found that she, just like him, took notes in the margins of her textbooks. There were instructions of wand movements, the proper pronunciations, and all forms of languages.

A small grin appeared on his face as he started to appreciate just how similar the two of them were.

Hermione had started rattling off some spells while Draco was staring at her book, his ears only hearing some parts.

"There's turning the target into birds...three times, Vera Verto,...cauldrons to sieves...so many transfigurations about colours...vanishing spells...reverse transfigurations...Malfoy, are you even listening?"

Draco's head snapped up to see Hermione's stern eyes staring at him, and he started to speak when he bit his lip.

"I mean...I was just...I heard some...I was _kind_ _of_ listening." He finally said sheepishly, and Hermione rolled her eyes with a loud sigh. Shaking her head, she closed her book, then spun to face Draco directly.

"Listen. If we're going to work together, you need to _actually listen_. I don't need to be doing this, and I don't want to be wasting my time." She declared, and Draco sat with wide eyes as he tried to absorb this new persona. Her eyes were frustrated and had little patience. He clicked his tongue.

"Man, I can understand why Potter and Weaselby complain about studying with you." He said before he even thought about it, then he groaned when Hermione hit him with one of her books.

"HEY! Shut it, Malfoy! We're going to work together! I know you're smart! You're more than that, you're _brilliant!_ And I promised I would help you this year. We'll work together, and in time I think you'll really change." She said, and Draco sat silent for a moment.

He still couldn't really understand why she of all people would want to help him, but he was also cheerier than he had ever felt inside knowing that he would be able to spend so much time with Granger.

He nodded with a smile, then scooched his chair closer to her, pulling out his quill and parchment.

"Right then. Let's get started."


	3. Taunts

**Author's Note:** In this chapter, we start to see how Draco is changing, and how the roles have really been reversed at Hogwarts. He starts to gain a new perspective, and soon things will really start to change for him.

* * *

 **Draco** **adjusted his bag** as he walked down the hall to his class, glancing at his pocket watch. He was late. But that didn't worry him.

He reached the door when he heard footsteps pounding behind him. He glanced up to see Potter and Weaselby sprinting down the hall, and he smirked.

Opening the door, Professor Snape looked up as the three boys arrived, Potter and Weaselby bursting in as Draco calmly walked through.

Snape narrowed his eyes. "Potter, Weasley, detention for late arrival. Take your seats." He said harshly, and Potter's eyes went wide.

"Wait, why isn't Malfoy getting detention?! He came in at the exact same time as we did!" He exclaimed, and Snape glared at him.

"Speaking out, ten points from Gryffindor." He said flatly, and Potter's eyes went wide, then filled with fury as Draco flicked his eyebrows as he went by, sauntering over to his seat. Dropping his bag to the floor, he glanced up to see Hermione staring at him with irritation.

He shrugged, raising his eyebrow. ' _What_?' He mouthed, and Hermione rolled her eyes, then dropped her head back to her parchment and books as Potter and Weaselby sat down indignantly, glaring at the Slytherin boy.

Draco grinned, then pulled his book out, turning to page 394 as Snape had written on the board. Sighing as he paused, he looked over his shoulder to see Hermione scribbling away on her parchment, already on her seventh page, whilst everyone else was only on their second or third. He stared at her, memorising every line and curve. A small smile formed on his face, then a voice carried over to him.

"Mr Malfoy, if you could focus on your work rather than the girls in the classroom..." Professor Snape drawled, and everyone looked up to see Draco's face turn red, then he immediately dropped his head back to his work. He heard snickers and murmurs, and he felt his ears turn hot.

Biting his lip, he knew Hermione was staring at him. His shoulders were tense as he quickly started his work, forcing back the incredible shame from his foolish slip-up.

* * *

After class ended, Draco was about to leave when he heard the professor call his name.

"Mr Malfoy."

Draco froze, slowly turning around. He bit his lip, then started towards Snape's desk. Potter shoved him on the way, snickering.

"Looks like you finally got in trouble, you git. See how we feel." He mocked, Weaselby laughing. Draco glanced back to see Hermione staring at him with wide eyes, but he immediately spun away.

He made his way to Professor Snape's desk, where he met the Potions Master's Eyes.

Snape raised his eyebrow, standing up.

"Draco, you have never been distracted in this class before. Never have you strayed from your work. What was it that distracted you today? Is there a certain someone I should know about?" He said slowly, his intimidating voice hanging on every syllable.

Draco shook his head quickly. "N-No, Professor. It...it won't happen again." He hung his head. "I'm sorry."

Professor Snape nodded, then sat down. "You're a smart boy, Draco. Don't hinder your mind with silly dreams." He stated, and Draco nodded with a hard breath, then spun to walk out of the classroom.

He adjusted his tie as he walked out the door, shouldering his bag when he heard a voice behind him.

"Malfoy!"

He spun around to see Hermione running after him. He bit his lip, then turned away to continue walking. In seconds she was in front of him, stopping him. He stared at her with a sigh.

"Granger, get out of the way..." He muttered, but Hermione shook her head.

"Malfoy, I'm sorry about what happened. Harry and Ron shouldn't have mocked you like that-"

Draco shook his head, gripping the strap of his bag tight. "No, it's not that..." He swallowed the nervousness, then pushed past her. "Look, just...just leave it. Drop it." He voiced lowly. He felt a hand take his shoulder before he started to walk away. He turned his head slightly over his shoulder to see Hermione's brown eyes staring into his.

"Are we...are we still going to study this afternoon?" She asked, and Draco paused, then pulled away from her hand.

"I don't know. Maybe. I...I'll see you later, Granger." He said quietly, then turned and walked down the hallway, hanging his head as a world of silence seemed to envelop him.

Walking into the courtyard, he started across when he heard the daunting voice.

"How'd it feel, Malfoy? Being treated just like everyone else for a change. Get in much trouble with Snape, or are you still his little pet?" Potter called, and Draco slowed, then heard a chuckle.

"You can't even get a decent girl to look at you, Malfoy. Not that you'll ever find one anyway. Who'd want to be friends with you?"

Draco stopped in his tracks, then whipped his head around with angered eyes. Potter and Weaselby met eyes, with Seamus Finnigan and Dean Thomas behind them. The four all smirked, then Potter turned back to Draco.

"Aw, what is it, Malfoy? Having a bad day?" He taunted as Draco's hands shook. Weaselby then chuckled.

"He looks kind of angry. Wouldn't want the little _ferret_ to get mad, would we?" He spoke, and the four erupted into laughter.

Draco's gritted teeth and clenched fists that were keeping his anger checked finally snapped, and he drew his wand as he stalked towards them.

"Shut your mouth, Weaselby! You filthy Gryffindors dare to talk to me like that?!" He spat, catching the attention of some of the other students studying in the courtyard. His breath was hard, his wand levelled right at the boys' heads.

Potter smirked, raising his eyebrow. "What are you going to do, Malfoy? You're already in trouble once with the Professor who would never even call you out for anything, how do you think the others are going to react?" He voiced, but Draco's hand tightened on his wand.

"I don't care! Why the hell can't you leave me alone?!" He shouted, making Finnigan and Thomas' eyes go wide, along with quite a few of the onlookers.

Draco was trying his best not to let his voice crack, not to let his lip shake, not to let the tears that were starting to gather show. His hand shook, then his eyes widened when he saw the girl who was staring at him from the corridor. Hermione's eyes were huge, concerned, but all Draco could see in them was the disappointment.

He had told her he was going to be different this year. But this here, this was just what he had always done.

Draco licked his dry lip, then slowly lowered his wand, spinning away. Letting out a short breath, Draco ignored the call that Potter sent after him.

"You're just the same, Malfoy! A coward!"

Draco's throat was tight, and he quickly strode from the courtyard out of the castle gates. In minutes he was at the Black Lake, where he dropped his bag on the grass next to the tree, sliding down against it.

It was then that Draco Malfoy finally let himself cry.


	4. Friends

**Author's Note:** This chapter starts to explain the vulnerable side to Draco, one that he really tries to hide. It might be that Hermione Granger could be the cure to his fear. Read on and you'll find out.

* * *

 **Hermione watched** as Draco stormed off through the gates, and she bit her lip, then heard laughter echoing in the courtyard. She turned her head to see the four boys still poking fun.

Potter chuckled. "Did you see his face?! He was so angry he looked like he could have blown his brains, then he just up and left. Is he gonna go tell daddy on us?" He mocked, and Weaselby snickered.

"What a coward. He can't even stand up to us without our wands. How the hell has he managed to stay here all this time? He's so useless." He stated.

Upon hearing this, Hermione's fists clenched. She stormed over towards them, and before Ron could even fully turn around, she smacked him across the face. Everyone in the courtyard stopped, then Hermione spun and smacked Harry, too. The two boys stared at her in silence, holding their cheeks, wide-eyed.

Hermione narrowed her eyes. "Have you _no_ respect for him?! Malfoy has been through enough taunting from you, Harry, and then you both have to go and say what you did?!"

She wheeled on Ron. "Did you really need to bring up what happened to him last year?! He was traumatized by that, you arse!" She yelled, then she shook her head. "And you called him _useless_?!" She smacked him again. "He's smarter than you two put together!"

The rest of the silent students in the courtyard watched Hermione's outburst with wide eyes, even more so shocked that she had actually hit both boys.

Potter took his hand away from his cheek with a raised eyebrow. "Why are you sticking up for him? All the times he's made fun of you in the past-"

" _Are in the past!_ He's changed, Harry! You need to try to understand! How did you feel the first two years, when all you were was a special boy you understood nothing about?! That's how Draco feels now! The way everyone has seen him? It hurts him!" She exclaimed, and Potter raised his eyebrow, shaking his head.

"How do you know this-"

"Because he _told me_ , Harry! Maybe because I actually decided to listen to what he had to say in his heart rather than just judge him!" She shoved past the shocked boys, stalking angrily towards the gate. She stopped at the edge of the hill, looking down, then she saw, far below, a small form sitting on the edge of the Black Lake. She sighed, then started down. As she reached the start of the clearing, she stopped when she saw the boy sitting against the tree, head down.

She walked closer, then froze when she heard the choked sobs coming from him, seeing that he had his knees pulled to his chest, arms resting on top, his head pressed into them. Hermione stared with wide eyes upon seeing the Slytherin boy crying, then she slowly continued towards him. About ten feet away, she stopped.

"Malfoy?" She voiced quietly, and the boy slowly raised his head, looking up to Hermione. She saw his red eyes and the tear streaks on his cheeks. He sniffed back some tears, then took a deep breath.

"Granger... What are you doing here?" He asked, his voice weak and cracking.

Hermione bit her lip, then moved to sit next to him. "I want to help you, Malfoy. You and I made a deal that we would study together, but now, seeing you being taunted like that, seeing you like this, I want to help you." She said, and Draco lifted his head fully, staring at Hermione with wide eyes. He wiped away some of the tears that still ran down his face, then he shook his head.

"Why do you care about me?" He asked in pain, the question catching Hermione off guard. She stared at the young Slytherin for a moment, trying to understand him and why he would ask that. She then suddenly felt the realisation. Draco had never had anyone to care about him. No one to try to comfort him, no one who truly cared about his well-being.

Hermione lent Draco a slight smile, putting her hand on his shoulder. "Because you need someone to care about you. Even if we're just studying together, I'm still going to look after you. Especially against Harry and Ron." She then smirked. "I don't think they'll want to cross me anytime soon, though." She said with a grin, and Draco cocked his head.

"Why?"

Hermione had a devilish look cross her face. "Because I smacked them both for mistreating you." She stated plainly, and Draco's eyes went wide, then he started to smile, then laugh. Hermione smiled as she saw the boy's happy face, feeling that she might be the one person who could turn this boy's life around.

Draco looked up at her with a grin, then nodded. "Yeah. We can help each other." He said, then he raised his eyebrow. "Does that make us friends?" He asked with a smirk, and Hermione grinned.

"If we weren't friends before, then yes."

Draco gave a small smile, and Hermione could see the hidden joy. She understood why. He deserved so much better than this. And she was going to make sure that the two of them got through the school year, that Draco came out a new man.

She stood up, offering Draco her hand. "Come on, Malfoy. Let's get back to class." She said, and Draco took her hand, being pulled to his feet. He let out a deep breath with a smirk.

"Class. Wouldn't want to miss that." He muttered, then winked when Hermione gave him a scolding stare. He picked up his bag, slinging it over his shoulder. Fixing his robes, he looked to Hermione, and the two started walking back toward the castle.

Draco then, in those moments, realised something.

He felt something new. Something different.

He had someone who cared.

Hermione Granger cared about him.

She actually cared.

And Draco liked the feeling of finally having someone like that.


	5. The Book

**Author's Note:** And here the adventure begins. Many new things will be introduced, and you will notice some parodies from the original HP books, but more subtle. And also this chapter marks the start of a very big change in the story. I'll leave it there. Please, again, leave reviews letting me know what you think.

* * *

 _ **2 weeks later**_

When Draco walked into the library, he reached into his bag for his parchment but felt nothing. He glanced down, then groaned as he realised he had left it in the Potions classroom. Shaking his head, he spun around and started back down towards the dungeons.

As he walked, he frowned as he thought of Hermione probably wondering where he was. Then he shrugged. She'd understand. If she had forgotten anything, she would panic.

Draco noticed there was no one entering or exiting the dungeons, and when he reached the Potions room, he found it to be empty.

He glanced up and down the hallway, then let out a breath. Walking into the classroom, he made his way over towards where he had sat earlier. He found his parchment on the desk, but his eyebrow rose when he saw the small book next to it. He stopped, taking his parchment and rolling it to put in his bag, then he picked up the book.

It was a book he had never seen before. Flipping through it quickly, his eyes widened. Looking around warily, he shoved the book in his bag then spun around, running out of the room. He couldn't wait to show Granger.

* * *

Draco glanced over at Hermione in class, bit his lip, then folded up the note he had written. Casting a small charm on it, he lifted the bird-shaped folding and blew it from his hand with a smirk, watching as it fluttered over to her.

It landed on her book, and she glanced up from her parchment with a raised eyebrow.

Draco dropped his head as she unfolded it, a small smile turning her lips up as she read the note.

 _Granger,_

 _Meet me in the library after class. I want to show you something I found._

 _Be sure that your buddies don't follow. I don't need Potter and Weaselby bothering us._

 _I'll be in the far section, past the Restricted. Under the portrait of the three knights._

 _~Malfoy_

Hermione's heart beat faster, and she turned her gaze to the light blonde who kept stealing glances at her. He thought she hadn't noticed it. But she knew that he had been looking at her all class. She didn't mind. She was actually happy. Seeing that Slytherin _smiling_? Joyful? It made her feel so warm inside.

She returned to writing down the list of spells for the class, scribbling her quill frantically. She was excited for class to finish now. Never had she thought that idea would cross her mind.

* * *

After class ended, Hermione directed Harry and Ron that she was going to the library to study History of Magic, their least favourite subject. Both boys immediately returned to the common room, not wanting to be trapped in the library to study for hours on end.

Hermione smirked, then ran to the library, pushing open the doors. She made her way down to the portrait Draco had told of, and there she saw the boy sitting, flipping through a book contently.

Glancing around, she hurried over, then set her books down next to him. "Malfoy." She said softly, and Draco jumped, then smiled, closing his Potions book.

"Granger. I wasn't sure if you were going to show or not." He admitted, and Hermione laughed.

"I told Ron and Harry that I was going to be studying History of Magic. It's their least favourite subject, and besides. They hate studying in general." She explained, and Draco snickered.

"Don't exactly quite have the brains you do, have they?" He remarked, then he shook his head. "In any case, Granger, I'm glad you came. I found something you might like." He said, and Hermione sat down next to him, intrigued.

"What?"

Draco smirked as he pulled a small book from his robes and pushed it towards her. She read the cover of it.

 _'Advanced Spellcasting- Defensive Charms and Curses'._

Hermione's eyes grew wide, her hair flipping as she snapped her head up. "Where did you find this?!" She exclaimed in a hushed tone, and Draco pointed at it.

"I discovered it in Snape's classroom." He said, making Hermione's shoulders tense.

"You mean this is _Professor Snape's_ book?!"

Draco shook his head. "It might be. But... I want to study it with you. It's years before we'll be learning this, Granger. Besides... you're an amazing witch, and honestly, it would be nice to be able to work with someone who actually knows what they're doing for a change." He muttered, making Hermione smile.

"Okay. We can figure out a schedule when we can really research this book. Maybe try to master some of the spells ourselves." She said, then she looked up to see Draco smiling at her. She raised her eyebrow. "What?"

He shook his head slowly. "It's...you're the very first person who's ever really wanted to join and study anything even remotely different." He stated, and Hermione laughed.

"It's something new! Of course, I want to learn about it! And they're all advanced spells?! Amazing!" She voiced, then the bell started to chime. She sighed, standing up. "I have to go, or I'll be late for Transfiguration." She said.

Draco raised his eyebrow as he looked at his pocket watch. "That class isn't for another twenty minutes, Granger." He pointed out, and Hermione shrugged.

"I like to be there early-"

Draco took her hand and sat her back down. Staring into her eyes, he sighed. "Granger, you're always rushing about for your classes. Have you ever considered to take time to relax?" He asked, but Hermione shook her head.

"I have to keep my grades up!"

Draco smirked. "You know how high my grades are. I don't spend every single second studying. And you shouldn't either. You know all this already, Granger. Just...take a breath." He urged, and Hermione went to say something, then stopped, smiling.

"You're right. And you're also right that your grades are impressively high. How do you manage to keep them that way? It seems all I ever see you doing is messing with your friends." She remarked slowly, and Draco sat back.

"I find time to work hard. I won't let myself fall behind anyone." He determined, causing a devious smirk to appear on Hermione's face.

"You're still behind me." She remarked, and Draco grinned, scooting closer to her.

"That's because I don't mind when it's you." He brushed her hair behind her ear, and Hermione met his eyes slowly with a small smile. Draco returned the warm face.

"I work hard, and I've passed you in Potions, but that's it. You're the best student I've ever seen, Granger. The most brilliant witch. I don't care if your parents are non-magic or not, despite what I've said in the past. You are the brightest witch of our age." He proclaimed, and Hermione's eyes widened, then she threw herself forward to hug him.

Wrapping her arms around him, she pressed her face into Draco's shoulder. Draco sighed as he held her tight, breathing in the smell of her hair, brushing it back. He pulled back for a moment, lifted her chin, then pressed his lips against hers in a kiss.

Hermione's eyes flew open, then Draco felt her hand rubbing the back of his head, fingers combing through his soft hair. He closed his eyes as they kissed passionately, finally fulfilling the feelings that had built up in him for so long. After they finally pulled away, Hermione blushed, meeting Draco's stormy eyes.

"That day on the train, after we arrived at the platform and you got in the carriage with me...you were going to talk to me about this, weren't you?" She asked curiously, and Draco hung his head with a grin.

"I was, but I failed miserably at it. The way I remarked to you, and I also just couldn't get my words out. I wasn't even sure what I was going to say." He admitted, and Hermione laughed.

"It's okay, Malfoy! You don't have to worry, I knew you were trying to have a nice conversation. After I locked the door, I sat there for a while and all I could think about was how nice you had sounded and how sincere your eyes were. I'd never seen them like that before," She said as she brushed back Draco's bangs. The boy took her hand in his and smiled.

"Please. My name is Draco." He said, and Hermione gave her cute smile, then hooked her arms around him to pull him into another kiss. He sighed as they held each other in an embrace, then the gong started to chime again, and he and Hermione both looked up at the same time.

Draco bit his lip. "Can we...meet up after classes end today?" He asked, and Hermione nodded.

"To start going over the book?" She wondered, and Draco smirked.

"Something like that." He winked but nodded. Hermione laughed as she grabbed her textbooks and bag, then held out her hand. Draco took it after packing his bag.

She looked up at him. "What class are you off to?" She asked as they started walking, and Draco smirked.

"Potions."

Hermione stopped. "But...we have Potions together-"

Draco shook his head. "You're not the only one who takes advanced classes. I'm in Advanced Potion-Making this year. Snape suggested I take it, as it's my best subject. I told you that the first time we studied together." he added, and Hermione nodded.

"You're a fantastic wizard, Draco. Now, we have to go! I'll see you in the courtyard after classes?" She asked, and Draco nodded.

"Yeah. Right outside in the walkway."

Hermione let go of his hand as she ran off down the hall, and Draco found that he was still holding his hand out, almost as if it were frozen from where she had let go.

He smiled as he felt that so longed warmth spread across his chest. That feeling he had searched for years to find.

Love. And he had found it with the one girl he never expected to fall for.

* * *

As soon as the bell rang, Draco was out of the classroom, headed down the hall as if his feet had wings. Pushing past people and weaving through the crowded hall to the dungeon, he finally came upon the large corridor, where he started running down to the library. Reaching it, out of breath, he slowed to a stop. Leaning against the wall, he tried to conceal his excited smile, replacing it with his typical monotonous expression. He then felt a hand on his shoulder, and he spun to see those brown eyes smiling at him.

"Hey," Hermione said, and Draco smirked.

"Hey. Ready to start going over the book?" He asked, and Hermione nodded enthusiastically.

"Of course!"

The two walked into the library, back towards the portrait of the Knights, where they had first met. Sitting down, Draco glanced around, then pulled the book out of his bag. Laying it on the table, he met Hermione's eye with a grin. She looked at the book with great interest.

"What kind of spells do you think will be in there?" She wondered, and Draco shrugged.

"This is just an idea, but I'm guessing advanced defensive charms and curses." He remarked snarkily, then he flinched when Hermione whacked him over the head with her roll of parchment.

" _Thank you_ , you pillock. I'm serious. Do you think the Unforgivable Curses will be in there?" She wondered, meeting Draco's frown at her calling him a 'pillock'. He then let out a hard sigh.

"Yeah. Probably. I mean, they are very advanced curses, but I wouldn't exactly classify them as defensive. I don't know. There might be a few new ones we'll learn," said Draco.

Opening the book, he raised his eyebrow at some of the writings in the margins, in a scribbled messy handwriting. Hermione slid the book closer to her as she read the introduction. Draco rolled his eyes.

"Oh god, do you have to read that? I just want to get to the spells." He groaned, but Hermione shushed him.

"Shut up. It's important to read the introduction. What if it had some kind of warning or something-"

"A warning that I would immediately ignore. No one tells me what I can and can't do." Draco stated, then Hermione raised her eyebrow.

"Not even your mother?" She asked slyly, making Draco scrunch his shoulders.

"That's different." He muttered, and Hermione tried to hide her amused smile.

"What about Snape?" She pried, and Draco's face morphed into a scowl.

"That's also different." He grumbled, making Hermione's hidden smile grow.

"What about your father-"

After trying to hide the wince from those words, Draco snagged the book back, shaking his head.

"Okay, enough! Let's just drop the topic and get to what we're here for."

He flipped the pages to the first chapter, where he raised his eyebrow in interest. Hermione leaned closer to him.

"What is it?" She asked, and Draco sighed.

"You were right. The very first curse in here is the Killing Curse." Closing his eyes, he shook his head. "Honestly, I was kind of hoping this wouldn't be a book with destructive spells like that, but now I have a feeling that that's exactly what it's going to be." He muttered, then he felt Hermione's arms wrap around him.

"Are you okay?" She asked softly as she brushed his hair back. Draco nodded with a deep breath.

"Just thinking of my father...his cruel ideals..." Shaking himself back, Draco flipped the page, reading some of the other spells. He pointed to one. "Look at this." He slid the book to Hermione, who read aloud.

"'Baubillious charm'. 'Damaging nature and produces a bolt of white light from wand tip'." She then raised her gaze to Draco. "That's interesting. I've never even heard of a spell like that." She stated, and Draco drew back.

"What? The genius has been met with a spell she doesn't know?!" He exclaimed theatrically, making Hermione roll her eyes. Letting out a long breath, she pushed the book back to Draco.

"Find an interesting spell, you ninny." She spoke, and Draco gave a victorious smirk, then looked down again.

"'Confringo'. A blasting curse. 'Causes anything the curse comes in contact with to explode and presumably catch fire.' Huh. That could be useful." He said, and Hermione raised her eyebrow.

"WHEN?!" She questioned, but Draco just shrugged.

"I don't know. It just might." He turned to the book, then a moment later he frowned, closing his eyes and turning his head away. Hermione slowly turned the book so she could see, then she bit her lip when she saw the next spell.

 _'_ _Cruciatus Curse-_ _Torture: the pain is described as having hot knives driven into the victim.'_

Hermione raised her gaze to Draco, who still sat with his head turned. She sighed, then stroked his face softly. "Draco..." She started, then Draco leaned into her hand with a light breath.

"My...my father...over the summer...he found out that I had neglected some of the studies he wanted me to do...the Dark Arts...and..." Draco's voice began to crack. "He cast that curse on me...it was the most excruciating pain I'd ever felt, like I was being ripped apart." He murmured.

Hermione's eyes were wide upon hearing that Draco had actually been Crucioed by his father. Never had she heard of a child being tortured, let alone with that horrific curse. She then wrapped her arms around him in a tight hug, turning his head back to meet his eyes. He stared into her gaze, his pain dissipating slightly. Hermione smiled, leaning forward as she gave him a kiss, petting his hair. Draco sighed as he felt her lips on his, and when she pulled away, he smiled faintly.

Hermione closed the book, shaking her head. "We'll look at it more tomorrow. Promise. But for now..." She held him close as she kissed him again, sighing as she felt Draco's arms around her. The two embraced tightly, the horrid memory fleeing from Draco's mind as only joyous moments filled his thoughts.


	6. The Explanation

**Author's Note:** As final exams wind down, I find myself writing more and more. I actually wrote this chapter, honestly, while I was supposed to be reviewing a math lab that I have. But I had ideas that I needed to get down. Over the holidays I will be at home for two weeks with my father, with my mother flying down to have Christmas with us. But then I will be flying back up with her, 1300 miles away, to spend the next two weeks. Now, considering my friends I left behind are up there, I may not be posting as much as I catch up or have fun in the snow, as there is none where I am, but since my Xbox ISN'T up there, I might also be writing MORE. It all depends. But in any case, I really hope for you to keep reading and be patient as I try to get more out. Thank you!

* * *

 **When Draco** finally returned to the common room that night, Blaise and Pansy were waiting for him. He raised his eyebrow when he saw the two, Blaise's gaze a curious one whilst Pansy just stared. He stopped in front of them.

"What? Why are you two looking at me like that?" He wondered, then Pansy shrugged.

"It just seemed like you've been awfully chipper lately, and we were wondering why." She said, and Draco's eyebrow rose further.

"What, am I not allowed to be happy?" He spat more viciously than intended. Blaise shook his head.

"Whoa there, mate. No need to get aggressive. It's just odd. We haven't seen you this happy in years. Typically it's only when you're taunting Potter and Weaselby and that Mudblood Granger." He said, Draco wincing unnoticeably at the horrid label. He then put on the mask and shrugged.

"What of it, then?"

Pansy stepped towards him. "Lisen, Draco. I heard that a week ago Potter and Weaselby were giving you trouble, and you pulled your wand on them, but then backed down without ever even casting a spell or anything. You didn't even try to fight. I want to know what's going on." She stated, and Draco bit his lip, then shook his head.

"Fine. You want to know what's going on, I'll tell you. But both of you have to promise not to tell _anyone_." He emphasized, and his two friends met eyes, then sat down on the couch, Draco sitting across from them.

Blaise leaned forward, resting his arms on his legs. "So, what is it, mate?" He asked, and Draco glanced around, then also leaned forward.

With a heavy sigh, he spoke. "I've been studying with Granger. We've been helping each other. I'm giving her tips and help in Potions, and she's helping me with Transfiguration. It's nothing." He answered, then found that both Pansy and Blaise's eyes had gone wide.

Pansy shook her head in disbelief. "You're _studying_ and _working_ with that _Mudblood?!_ " She exclaimed in a hushed voice, making Draco ball his fist.

"Don't call her that. It doesn't matter what bloodline she comes from. She's just as much a witch as you and belongs here the same as us all. She's a brilliant girl, and I'm just trying to make things right after all I've done over the past five years." He explained, and Blaise sat silent for a moment, then let out a slow breath.

"Who are you and what have you done with Draco Malfoy?" He remarked, then a moment later was kicked in the shin by Draco, making him cringe. "Owwww..."

Draco narrowed his eyes. "I'm serious! Remember at the beginning of the year, when we were on the train, and I got up to go do something?" The two nodded. "I was going to find Granger. I wanted to talk to her, try to start anew." He then leaned back on the sofa. "Then when we reached the platform, I ran off, and I know you both were wondering where the hell I went. Well, I went to the carriages to find her again, and I caught one with her up to the castle. We talked the whole way, and I explained to her that I want to try to be a different person this year. I want to try to draw away from the reputation I've made, and be a better student. Not just in studies, but in my personality, too. I want to make amends with her. And...she accepted. We decided to start studying together, and she told me that she would help me to be a better person. She's the one who stood up to Potter and Weaselby after...well, what happened last week. She defended me, then came to comfort me when I felt I had no one left to go to. She..."

Draco raised his head with a curious expression. "She actually cares about me." He relayed, and it was quiet for a moment, then Pansy scooted forward on the couch, sitting on the edge.

"Let me get this straight. Granger and you are working together, she's forgiven you for basically all the rubbish we've given them over the years, and on top of all of that she has started to stick up for you against both Potter _and_ the Weasel?" She questioned disbelievingly, and Draco nodded.

"Yes. I told you. Things are going to change." He said, and Blaise nodded, still taking in all the new information, but seeming to be processing it fine.

"So, is there anything else going on? Like, other than studying? I mean, yeah, you're becoming a better person and no longer a gittish knob head," He waved away the vicious look Draco gave him. "Yes, you were a knob head, don't try to deny it. But you still seem way too happy just from studying." He pointed out.

Draco sighed, then glanced down as he fixed his robes. "Well, I guess I am a bit happier to be studying with someone who actually knows what they're doing," He smirked at Blaise and Pansy's disapproving glares. "Don't try to deny it, you were horrible." He said with Blaise's words against him. "But it's also nice being able to be a different person and also just..." He paused, then smiled slightly. "It's also nice just knowing someone cares."

Draco had absolutely no intention of telling both of them about the book that he had found and that he and Hermione were going over, or the fact that he and Granger were actually together. He knew they weren't ready for that yet.

Blaise and Pansy met eyes again, then Blaise broke out in a smile. "You know, I can honestly say I never would have expected this, but I'm glad for you, mate. If you want to be a better person and study with Granger, however odd it might be, then all the more to you."

Pansy nodded with a grin. "Breaking a Slytherin stereotype of not only hating Gryffindors but also being _friends_ with a Mudbloo-" She stopped herself, then continued. "Being friends with a _Muggle-born_ , you're the last person I would have expected, what with your family and all, and what you've been taught, and your father-"

Draco sat forward. "That's exactly the point! I don't want to be that person anymore! How my father raised me and what he taught me to believe was wrong! I was twelve when I first called Granger a Mudblood. No kid should use that kind of language that young! Also, the way I treated the Weasleys and Potter, however much I still hate those two," He muttered. "It was all wrong. I'm making my own way now, and I am not going to follow the Malfoy ideals any longer. I won't! I am my own person. I don't want to be seen as 'Malfoy'. I want to be seen as 'Draco'. As who I am. This year, things will be different." He professed, then he stood up.

"You should be glad I told you at all. I was hesitant about even telling you about my choice to draw from my family, let alone studying with Granger." He admitted, but Blaise stood up with a grin.

"No. I'm sure it was hard, but the fact that you told us means more than anything. And I know what's going on now, and even if it's a bit out of the ordinary, I support you, mate." He said, and Pansy smiled, rising to her feet.

"I'm with Blaise. I trust your judgement, Draco. I always have." She said, and Draco nodded with an appreciative smile.

"I'm going to head to bed. I promised Granger we could meet in the morning before Potions so I could give her a heads up. We're learning Amortentia tomorrow, and she could use a helping hand." He told, and Pansy crossed her arms with a smile.

"You really are a different Draco. Maybe being with Granger will change you for the best." She said, and Draco smirked with a nod.

"That's the idea." He turned and walked from the common room to the boys' dormitory, where he shrugged off his robes and hung them on his bedpost. He loosened his tie with a long breath, then unbuttoned his shirt to pull on his dark grey short sleeve. Pulling off his shoes and pants and slipping into his silk pyjamas, he climbed into bed and laid back, closing his eyes as he crossed his arms behind his head. A smile crept onto his face at the thought of being able to see Hermione before class.

She was the best thing that had ever happened to him, and even if it meant keeping it a secret forever, he would never, ever stop loving her.


	7. Potions Class

**Author's Note:** So I just had to do a chapter of them in Potions class. I might do another, maybe not. But I just love the thought of the two in class, Draco, a Potions master, and Hermione, learning from the best.

* * *

 **The next morning** , Draco got dressed early and was out of the common room before hardly anyone else was up. Hurrying down to the library, Draco stopped to check his pocket watch, then sat down on the bench outside. His knee bounced in anticipation, and he had to close his eyes and take a long breath for him to finally relax.

"Hi, Draco."

He looked up with a wide smile to see Hermione walking towards him, holding her books close. He scooted over on the bench as Hermione sat down next to him, kissing his cheek softly.

"How'd you sleep?" She asked kindly, and Draco shrugged.

"A bit better than usual. I was just excited that we're doing something fun in Potions." He said, and Hermione smirked.

"I thought you found Potions fun no matter what we're doing." She joked, making Draco roll his eyes.

"Okay, yes, I do always find it enjoyable. But today we're brewing _love potions_." He said in a cooing voice, making Hermione laugh.

"So what is it, Casanova? What are we cooking up?" She asked, scooting closer, and Draco grinned, brushing her hair back as he leaned close to her.

"Nothing special. You'll see when we get to class." He said quietly, then he pressed his lips against hers, holding her tight as she held him close, gladly returning the kiss. The two sat together for a moment, locked in passion until the bell began to chime, and they both drew back.

Draco grinned, then stood up, offering Hermione his hand. "Off to class." He said, and Hermione took his outstretched arm, then was pulled to her feet. The pair began to walk together, then they saw the stream of students, and knew that they had to keep themselves hidden. Draco let go of Hermione's hand after saying, "I'll see you in class." Then he disappeared into the crowded halls.

* * *

In the Potions classroom, it was dark and dank, but the dungeons were always like that. Snape, this morning, eyed the class over with a brooding and sinister look, but this was nothing out of the ordinary. He always looked at the students that way.

When everyone had gotten settled in their seats, he stood in front, then sneered before he began to speak.

"Today, you will all be learning to brew a new potion, Amortentia. Can anyone tell me what Amortentia is?" He asked in his long, drawly voice. Draco raised his hand before Hermione could, surprising a lot of people. He typically kept quiet in class just knowing he'd do well. Even Snape seemed slightly intrigued.

"Mr Malfoy?"

Draco nodded. "Amortentia. The most powerful love potion in the world. It is recognisable by its distinctive mother-of-pearl sheen and by the fact that its steam rises in characteristic swirls. The potion smells differently to different people according to what attracts them." He answered, and the classroom was silent for a moment, shocked that Draco Malfoy actually knew what a love potion was.

Then a voice finally broke the silence. "You see to know about that pretty well, Malfoy! Have a certain someone you're trying to smuggle it to?" The taunting tone rang out, and everyone turned to see Potter and Weaselby snickering. Draco narrowed his eyes, but Snape called Potter out first.

"Mr Potter, mockery and taunts are not something I tolerate in my classroom. Fifteen points from Gryffindor. And do keep your mouth shut. I would like to see you try to properly brew up this potion." He sneered, causing the class to laugh as Potter and Weaselby suddenly flushed.

Draco met Hermione's eye with a sparkle, and she smiled at his smirk. He turned back around to find Snape's gaze on him.

"Thank you, Mr Malfoy, for that detailed description. Five points to Slytherin." He awarded, and Draco nodded, smiling. Snape then addressed the class. "I expect there are some who would like to use this potion to their advantage, but let me make one thing clear. _This potion does not leave this classroom._ Is that understood?" He demanded, and the students immediately nodded.

"Good. First, I'll pair you off, and if I hear one complaint, the one talking will find themselves in detention before they can make another sound." Snape stated, and the classroom went quiet, understanding the consequence. Snape eyed the students, then nodded.

"Nott and Weasley, you're at cauldron one. Davis and Thomas, cauldron two. Bulstrode and Greengrass, cauldron three. Zabini and Parkinson, cauldron four. Potter and Finnigan...try not to blow anything up." He said, making a few of the Slytherins snicker. Snape then turned to the final pair. "Granger, you're with Malfoy so you'll at least know what you're doing." He spat, and Hermione caught Draco's eye, then moved to his table. She sat down next to him, attempting to look unpleasant and upset about the pairing. Draco also put up the facade and glared at the girl, but she saw the smile in his shimmering grey eyes.

Snape addressed the class. "Now I want you to gather your ingredients. Be sure that you have everything correct. Wouldn't want anyone to have an accident, would we?" He said maliciously, but Draco detected a hint of amusement.

"Ashwinder eggs, rose thorns, refined peppermint oil, and moonstone. Those are your ingredients."

Draco turned to Hermione, then pointed out each item on the table. "Okay, so, I'll show you how to start the potion, then I'll let you stir it." He said, causing Hermione's eyebrow to rise.

"Stir it? That's all you're letting me do?" She said indignantly, and Draco met her eye.

"Unless you want the potion to explode as I told you it could, then _yes,_ " he replied, and Hermione nodded.

Draco picked up the Ashwinder eggs, dropping one into the cauldron. It sizzled in the boiling heat, and he turned to Hermione. "Hand me those rose thorns. Careful, some of them have sharp edges," he warned, and Hermione sighed.

"They're called thorns. I assumed as much." She remarked, handing him the thorns. Draco rolled his eyes, adding in the handful.

He noticed Snape glancing his way, and even though no smile was portrayed, he saw the approving look.

Draco held out his hand towards Hermione. "Refined peppermint oil." He demanded, and she placed it in his hand. He poured the contents of the vial into the cauldron, the potion starting to pop. He then finally turned to the mortar and pestle, dropping the moonstone in and starting to crush it into a fine dust. Hermione watched intently, looking around the class to see the other students still on the beginning steps. She stifled a smile.

Draco lifted the pestle, then poured the crushed moonstone into the cauldron. He then turned to Hermione. "Stir it five times in a counterclockwise direction." He told, and Hermione nodded, doing exactly as he said. She stirred the potion, then Draco smiled when he saw the steam starting to rise in spirals from the cauldron.

"Okay. We did it." He said as the strong aroma of the potion reached his nose. He took a deep breath, grinning slightly as the aroma he smelled met that of Hermione's hair and green apples. The steam turned light green, then it turned a yellowy white as Hermione moved closer, meeting Draco's eye. He smirked, knowing exactly what the colour meant. It then turned yellow, then green, and Hermione sighed.

"Old parchment and freshly cut grass…" She murmured, and Draco raised his eyebrow.

"Oh? Nothing else?" He teased quietly, making Hermione kick him under the table.

Snape then walked over, stopping in front of their cauldron to inspect, then nodded when he saw the Mother of Pearl sheen to it and the spirals in the steam.

"It would appear that Mr Malfoy and Ms Granger have successfully and perfectly brewed the Amortentia potion. Twenty points to Slytherin." He granted. "You would all do well as to take note from so proper a Potions brewer as Mr Malfoy." He drawled, then a bang from the other side of the room made everyone's heads snap around.

Potter and Finnigan stood rigid in shock, both their faces covered in ash, hair standing up. Their cauldron spat red smoke, and Draco couldn't help it. The snicker came out from his grinning and amused expression as Snape gritted his teeth and walked towards the two boys.

"It would seem, boys, that you have somehow managed to cause your cauldron to explode. Although considering your history with everything, Mr Finnigan, I'm not at all surprised. Clean up this mess, and twenty points from Gryffindor. You might, later on, ask Ms Granger what she learned from Mr Malfoy that they so successfully completed their task." said the Potions Master, spinning around and stalking to the front of the room, his cloak billowing behind him.

"This class is dismissed!" He spoke, and the students gathered up their books and parchment, walking out of the classroom. Draco waited for Hermione, watching as she packed up her textbooks, quill, and parchment perfectly in her bag. One of her books fell to the floor, and he bent down to pick it up for her with a smirk. Handing it to her, she blushed slightly, smiling cutely. The two exchanged a glance, then walked out of the classroom together, talking and laughing.

* * *

Potter had watched the small interaction, and he had also noticed how friendly the two had seemed during class. He went over things in his head, curious at the change between the two. First Hermione had stood up for Malfoy in the courtyard, saying that she had listened to him, now she was smiling at him and working in Potions, then _blushing_ when he handed her a book?! And the way the two had walked out together...laughing and talking like that? And Potter could have sworn he saw them holding hands…

"Harry, are you okay?" Finnigan asked as he was wiping down the table. Potter nodded, turning back.

"I'm fine, Seamus, thanks. Just lost in thought." He muttered, shaking his head. ' _Lost in thought and starting to think something's up.'_


	8. Revelations and Divinations

**Author's Note:** So this is basically a connecting chapter, and I know it's a little off. But I also thought that adding in some of the details could prove a bit interesting and add a bit more curiosity.

* * *

When Potter finally returned to the Gryffindor common room after a gruelling lecture from Snape and the clean up with Finnigan, he looked around, then spotted the girl sitting by the fireplace, nose buried in a book.

His nose turned up in a curious manner, and he walked over. "Hermione."

She looked up, then smiled when she saw the boy. "Harry. What is it?" She then frowned slightly. "You know, what you did in Potions when you mocked Malfoy, why would you do that?" She asked, but Potter brushed the question aside.

He sat down next to her, leaning on the back of the couch. "Hermione, what's going on with you and Malfoy?" He asked, and he noted when Hermione's eyes went wide.

"I...what do you mean?" She asked shakily, and Potter shook his head.

"I knew it. What are you doing with him? I've noticed how friendly you two are now, and don't try to deny it." He said. Hermione opened her mouth to say something, then she sighed, hanging her head and closing her book.

She looked around, then met Potter's eyes. "Harry, promise me you won't freak out, _or_ tell Ron. I know how he'd react." She begged, and Potter raised his eyebrow, then nodded, trusting his best friend.

Hermione sighed. "I've been studying with him." She said, and Potter raised his eyebrow.

"Wait, you've been studying with Malfoy?! Since when?!" He asked quietly, and Hermione just shook her head.

"A few weeks ago. We've been working together. I'm helping him with Transfiguration, and Draco is helping me with Potions." She said, making Potter draw back slightly.

"'Draco'? Since when are you on a first name basis?" He wondered, but Hermione shook her head.

"That doesn't matter! Just promise me you won't tell Ron!" She pleaded, and after a short hesitation, Potter nodded.

"Okay. But...you really trust him?" He wondered, and Hermione nodded.

"I said it that day in the courtyard, Harry. He's changed. He's different this year. I believe in him, Harry. I'm going to make him a better person." She said, and Potter sighed.

"If you really think this is a good decision, then I won't stop you. Doesn't mean I have to like it, because I still think he's a git, but if you trust him, I respect your judgement." He smiled, then put his hand on her shoulder. "Just promise me those Slytherin traits won't rub off on you." He joked, and Hermione laughed.

"No guarantee, but I'll try."

Potter shrugged. "That's all we can do." He then stood up and turned towards his dorm. "I'll see you later, Hermione. I need to lay down after hearing Snape's voice echo in my head." He remarked, making Hermione giggle.

"Okay, Harry. Good luck."

He nodded. "You, too. Have fun studying." He said, then he walked upstairs. Hermione watched him go, then turned back to her book. She felt a smile plastered on her face just at the thought of Draco, and she closed her eyes, looking forward to their studying session later.

* * *

Although the rest of the day neither of the two had classes with one another, Draco still found himself constantly daydreaming about Hermione. During Divinations, a class he typically didn't really pay attention in but still somehow managed to get good grades, he was leaning on the table, running his finger over the crystal ball on the table when he felt an odd feeling.

Turning around, he noticed Potter staring at him, but for the first time since he could remember the look wasn't sinister or derogatory in any way. Instead, it seemed to be...understanding?

There was something about him, his composure, that was no longer seeming to want to instigate a fight with Draco, but instead just keep calm.

It almost set Draco on edge. At least when Potter was angry, he knew what to expect and knew why he treated him like that. But this new attitude gave him unease from the fact that Draco had absolutely no clue _why_ Potter was now acting this way.

Then a thought crossed his mind. Had Hermione possibly told Potter about them? He knew she would never tell him about the two of them being _together_ , but she might have explained to him how they were studying together, just like he had with Blaise and Pansy.

In that case, he didn't really care, and that would explain it. If Hermione had told Potter, then she would have managed for him to not be cross, but understand that they were 'just studying'.

He smirked, then a hand on his suddenly snapped him back to the present to find himself staring into Professor Trelawney's wide round spectacles framing her huge eyes.

"My dear boy, there is something troubling you...The ghosts of your past that prevent you from taking another step forward in the world that which you desire." She said in her floating and strange voice, a large amount of the class watching.

Draco drew his hand back with a frown, narrowing his eyes. "Ghosts of my past? What do you think you're talking about? Don't think you know me." He said harshly, trying to prevent himself from seeming to come off as weak and vulnerable, confused by her words.

Professor Trelawney stared at him intricately for a moment, then slunk back to address the class again. Draco stretched his hand, looking down at it with a frown, then he leaned back as he waited for the class to end, ignoring some of the interesting looks that students were now giving him, curious as to what the Divinations professor could have meant about Draco Malfoy's feelings.


	9. Tosser Trouble

**Author's Note:** This is the chapter that I had written a while back before quite a few of the previous chapters, and I am so glad to finally get it out!

* * *

 **A few days later...**

After classes for the day had ended, Draco made his way quickly to the courtyard, practically skipping down the hall. He passed Terence Higgs, a seventh-year fellow Slytherin, as well as the previous Seeker. He was then surprised as he stopped him.

"You seem awfully cheerful and in a rush, Malfoy. Where you off to?" He wondered, and Draco bit his lip as Theodore Nott, also a seventh year and someone he had never really seen eye to eye with, stepped up behind him, grabbing his shoulder.

Draco flinched with wide eyes, then Terence met his gaze with a smirk. "What's up, Malfoy? You scared?"

Nott behind him chuckled. "You know, it seems recently you've been quite distant despite that you've been doing well in all your classes. Parkinson and Zabini always going on about how strong a wizard you are." He voiced, then he leaned closer. "Where's that strength now?" He mocked, and Draco's eyes narrowed, trying to break away.

"Get off me!" He shouted. A number of students had by now stopped across the hall and around them, watching from a distance with curiosity.

Higgs shook his head, stepping closer to Draco. "What are you going to do about it?" He snickered, biting his lip with a smile.

Draco's jaw clenched, glaring at Terence. "What do you even want?!" He shouted, then Nott tightened his hold, holding Draco's arms behind him.

"Watch your tone, Malfoy. Wouldn't want a kid like you to get _hurt_." He warned, making some of the bystanders shrink back.

Draco frowned as he turned his head back. "First off, I'm only two years below you, so don't call me 'kid'. _Second_ of all, you didn't answer my question." He growled, then he felt Higgs grab his chin and whip his head back to his furious gaze.

"I want to know what you took from the professor's classroom a few weeks back. You took something, and I'm guessing something interesting, why else would you be disappearing off to who-knows-where every day. What did you take?" He demanded, and Draco's eyes widened, then he shook his head.

"I don't know what you're talking about." He denied, and Higgs smirked.

"That wasn't the answer I'm looking for. I know you have something. And I expect you to tell me." He suddenly wound up and slugged Draco across the face, making the young boy groan as his head jerked to the side, breathing hard. Students gasped, and Draco lifted his head slowly, blood peeking from his nose.

Higgs narrowed his eyes, then hit him again, Draco's gasp cutting short as he felt the blood now freely run down his face as well as the stinging around his eye. The warm liquid ran down his chin, dripping down his neck. His breath was short and shaky, but he shook his head.

"Piss off…" He shot through a hard breath, and Nott behind him grabbed his hair, pulling his head back.

"What was that?" He asked harshly, but Draco sneered at the two of them.

"I said, PISS OFF!" He elbowed back into Nott, who gasped. Draco drew his wand quickly, pointing it at Higgs.

"Incarcerous!" Ropes suddenly bound Higgs, and the boy fell to the floor. Draco spun on Nott with narrowed eyes.

"Everte Statum!" Nott, wide-eyed, was thrown back, groaning as he hit the floor. Draco immediately bolted down the hallway, hearing the gasps from the students behind him as well as the shouts of Higgs and Nott.

His breath was hard as he sprinted into the courtyard, then he saw Hermione sitting on the edge of the statue. He gritted his teeth, then grabbed her hand as he fled past her. Her eyes flew open in surprise as she was dragged along and widened in concern when she saw the blood on Draco's face. "Draco, what happened-"

The multiple students they passed stared with wide eyes. Then a shout from behind the two made Draco's throat close up.

"GET MALFOY! HE HEXED HIGGS AND NOTT!"

Hermione's head snapped to Draco, who shook his head. "I'll explain! Just RUN!" He yelled, and Hermione nodded as they ran towards the footbridge. A shout behind them made Draco turn his head only to see a yellow bolt flying towards the pair. He shoved Hermione out of the way, barely missing it himself.

Another shout worried him as more voices began to follow them. He looked over his shoulder slightly, not soon enough before a red bolt hit his back. He shouted in surprise as the Flippendo sent him flying forward, crashing to the ground with a groan.

Hermione skidded to a stop in front of him, spinning with wide eyes. "DRACO!"

He shook his head, meeting her eyes. " _Just keep going!"_ He yelled before another cast bound him to the ground, the same spell he had used not moments ago on Higgs.

Hermione hesitated, then she saw the pain in Draco's eyes, and she continued quickly across the footbridge. Draco watched her go, then dropped his head back, closing his eyes with a hard breath.

Within moments he felt the multiple arms grab him, lifting him to his feet. He glared at the ones who held him, Xander Lofthouse, a sixth year Slytherin, as well as Cole Spencer, the same stats as Xander. He struggled against their hold, then a daunting voice made him raise his gaze.

"You're going to pay for that, Malfoy!" Theodore Nott strode down the hill towards him, eyes burning with hate. Draco struggled harder, stepping back, eyes wide. Nott clenched his fists, then Draco saw Terence Higgs in the distance, standing on top of the hill with a group of Slytherins around him. His arms were crossed, and Draco gulped back the fear.

Theodore grabbed Draco by the front of his shirt, sneering. "What are you trying to hide?!" He questioned, then he looked up at Lofthouse. "Who was he with? Who did he try to escape with?" He asked, and Xander smirked.

"Granger." He answered, and Nott's eyes widened. Turning his gaze back to Draco, he frowned.

"Consorting with Mudbloods, are we now?" He remarked, and Draco flinched at the name. Nott raised his eyebrow, then his eyes slowly widened as a grin spread across his face.

"Hold on…" He said slowly, then he lifted Draco's chin with his hand harshly, forcing his gaze to meet. "Do you love her?" He asked curiously, and both Xander and Cole's eyes shot open.

Draco's eyes narrowed, but he kept his mouth shut. Nott chuckled, then met the eyes of the two holding Draco. "Well, this certainly changes things. But we do still need to know one thing." He said, narrowing his eyes.

Draco could see behind him that a number of students from all houses had gathered at the top of the hill, staring down at the scene.

Nott met Draco's eyes viciously. "What have you been hiding? What did you take from Snape's classroom?! You stole something, didn't you?!" He demanded, but Draco remained quiet, his mouth forming into a slight smirk. Theodore gritted his teeth, then shook his head, drawing his wand.

"I'm not going to play your games, Malfoy!" He pointed his wand at Draco, then cast his spell. "Legilimens!"

Draco closed his eyes, quieting his mind. He had been studying and perfecting the skills of Occlumency, able to deny the attacker access to any part of his mind.

As Theodore attempted to get inside Draco's head with his spell, he only grew angrier at the fact that he was unable to. He pulled back his wand with stunned eyes.

"How?!" He demanded, but Draco just shrugged with a slight smile.

"I've got some tricks up my sleeve. Including the mastering of Occlumency." He admitted smugly, making the three boys' eyes widen. Then a voice behind Nott turned Draco's blood cold.

"There's one thing that can make him talk," Higgs said, making Xander's eyes widen.

"You… you don't mean…" His voice turned to a whisper. "The Cruciatus Curse?!"

Draco's heart stopped as Higgs nodded, eyes boring into the fifth year's soul.

"Malfoy, if you just tell us what you stole, we'll let you go painlessly. If not…" He drew his wand slowly, tightening his hand around it. "I'll be forced to take more drastic measures." He said, making some of the other students above gasp.

Draco swallowed his fear, then narrowed his eyes, refusing to just let the bullies win. "No." He retorted, watching as Terence's face turned gleeful.

"I was rather hoping you would say that." He remarked, then Cole shook his head.

"But...but that's one of the Unforgivables! You'll get sent to Azkaban!" he exclaimed, but Terence tilted his head with a smirk.

"My father is one of the top Death Eaters and has a high place in the Ministry. Even if I got convicted, he would stop the trial from ever even happening." He comforted, then he turned his wand on Draco. "This is your last chance, _blood-traitor_." He burned, upon which Draco flinched, but then shook off.

He frowned, thinking desperately, ' _Where's a professor when you need one?!'_

He closed his eyes with a sigh, then shook his head silently. Terence grinned, then locked eyes with both Cole and Xander.

"Drop him."

As soon as the boys had tossed Draco to the ground, Higgs flicked his wand quickly.

"Crucio!"

The students gasped as Draco cried out, jolting and writhing on the ground. He grabbed his head, feeling his heartbeat pound, the curse ripping through his body. He screamed in pain, his breath being stolen from him. Xander and Cole met nervous eyes as Terence and Theodore stood above Draco.

Nott narrowed his eyes. "What did you take?! What have you been hiding?!" He demanded, but Draco managed to shake his head.

"No! I...I won't... " He gasped out, refusing to admit that he had stolen an Advanced Spells book, one that even the seventh years didn't have access to. He barely opened his eyes as the pain shot to every single nerve in his body, still writhing on the ground. "You….knob tossers...don't deserve to know….anything…" He gasped out.

Nott gritted his teeth, then stepped forward, drawing his wand. "That's it. You asked for it." He aimed his wand down at the young boy who had tears running down his face now, crying. Terence had turned his wand, and the curse had heightened.

Draco's pain was unlike anything he had ever felt. Even worse than when his father had tortured him. It was worse than death, which at this point he actually desired. Anything to make it stop…

His lips curling up in a sneer, Theodore raised his wand. "Crucio!"

Draco's eyes shot open as the spell hit him again, screaming in pain, echoing in his head, through his chest, his entire body shaking. Jolting and seizing on the ground, both of the seventh years standing above him casting that wretched curse, Draco sobbed in agony, his screeches now louder than ever. A small line of blood ran from his mouth, then his eyes closed, head falling back.

Higgs raised his eyebrow, then a shout flung his wand from his hand, and he snapped his head up to see a few of the students had come halfway down the hill, but his eyes grew wide when he realised it wasn't them who had cast it.

Professor Snape stood with them, wand pointed directly at him. Snape glared at him furiously, then he cast Nott's wand away, too. Cole and Xander took one look at each other and sprinted up the hill, past the group of students who watched them with hate.

Nott's eyes grew wide as Snape slowly walked down to him. He met Higgs' eye first, the boy treacherously staring back.

"It was you, then, who cast the first spell, Mr Higgs?" He asked in his intimidating, slow voice that hung on every word. He dropped his gaze to Draco, and the students' eyes widened when they saw he was unmoving. Snape met Nott's eye as well but didn't even have to say anything before Nott nodded.

"It...it was his idea." He pointed at Higgs shakily, who shot him a hateful glare but then turned slowly to his head professor. Snape shook his head, then swung his wand between the two of them.

"I will alert the Headmaster of what has transpired here, and I believe you'll find yourselves both on your way to conviction," He turned his head towards Higgs. "Whether your father has a place in the Ministry or not. There are twenty-six eyewitnesses, and they can all testify, Mr Higgs. I suggest you get yourselves going." He snarled, making the two boys disappear as they ran up towards the castle.

One of the students in the small group behind Snape ran forward toward Draco, but Snape stopped her. "Ms Parkinson, I am aware that he is your friend, however, I must ask you to step back."

Pansy slowly nodded, one of the other girls holding her tight. Snape dropped to Draco's side, his solemn feeling masked by his constant straight expression. Lifting Draco into his arms, he slowly started up the hill, passing the wide-eyed students in the courtyard. They watched with heavy hearts as the young boy who they had just watched get tortured over and over, whilst they themselves just stood and did nothing, hung motionless in their professor's arms.

Draco Malfoy looked so small, so beaten, so….gone.


	10. Losing Him

**Author's Note:** Even though none of us are Hermione in this case, I'm sure we can all very clearly feel the pain and fear that is controlling her. I mean, how would you react if your boyfriend (or girlfriend) just got what happened to Draco? Also, none of you are leaving reviews. PLEASE let me know what you think!

* * *

 **Hermione** **had** , whilst this had all transpired, run across the bridge, but then turned back and made her way back up to the castle. Sprinting down the hall from the other courtyard, her breath was hard, but then it stopped when she saw all the students gathered on the edge of the hill, staring down, some holding each other tight.

A dark feeling washed over her, then her heart stopped, eyes wide when she saw her Potions master appear over the edge, walking up the hill with an unmoving form in his arms. She took a shaky breath, all she could manage as her mouth hung open, staring at the young blonde boy with blood running down his face, head fallen to the side, his arm hanging limply over the professor's.

Draco... _her_ Draco… was he….was he... _dead?!_

Her eyes grew wider as Snape walked through the courtyard, carrying him inside. She remained frozen as many of the eyes turned on her, the girl who Draco had tried to save from the group of boys.

Tears began to run down her face as the terror hit, and she started to run after Snape, her chest so tight it felt like it was about to burst.

Please...oh, dear, Merlin, don't let her have lost him.

She fled into the hospital only to stop, wide-eyed, at the number of professors around one of the beds. She could see McGonagall, Snape, Madame Pomfrey, and Dumbledore all standing around. Then Snape stepped slightly aside, and Hermione could then see Draco's still form.

His head laid gently on the pillow, breath barely escaping his mouth, his arm limp beside him, his other hand on his chest. The blood on his face had been cleaned, but he still looked so beaten.

Hermione let out a small gasp, covering her mouth with her hands as the professors all looked up. McGonagall's gaze softened as she saw Hermione's wide, fear-filled eyes. She bustled over to her, then took her by the hand.

"Ms. Granger. If I'm not wrong, you and Mr. Malfoy have a special bond?" She asked with a slight smile, and Hermione slowly nodded, forcing back the tears.

"Is he...is he…." She couldn't get the words out, not wanting to say that word she dreaded to hear, but she managed it anyway. "Is he going to die?" She barely squeaked out, and McGonagall hesitated, then lead Hermione away a bit.

"Ms. Granger, we do not know what state Mr. Malfoy is in. Never have we seen someone so young get hit by two Cruciatus curses at once. Let alone have we seen someone his age get hit by _one_ Cruciatus curse." She shook her head, looking into the worried eyes of Hermione. The girl shook her head.

"No, he...he's survived being hit by one before." She said quietly, and McGonagall raised her eyebrow.

"Meaning what?"

Hermione looked the professor in the eye. "Draco told me that over the summer...his father Crucioed him after finding out he wasn't studying what he had been given. He's been through that before." She said slowly, causing McGonagall's eyes to go wide.

"My dear Merlin, I never knew that the boy had been harmed by his father." She said, and Hermione nodded, then bit her lip, glancing back at Draco.

"But...he was tortured by two people at the same time...Higgs and Nott...they….what do you think it did?" She asked shakily, but McGonagall just sighed sadly.

"I'm sorry, Ms. Granger. I don't know what I can tell you. We know just as little as you do-"

"Might I have a word with Ms. Granger, Professor?" The low voice asked from behind them, and both turned to meet Snape's gaze.

McGonagall shook her head. "Severus, I believe she needs-"

Snape met her eyes with a silent 'stop'. "I understand well what the circumstance is, and I believe I can provide insight into Ms. Granger that she might find helpful, and perhaps she can also assist me." He drawled out slowly, and McGonagall glanced down at Hermione, back at Severus, then nodded.

"Very well." She quickly returned to the group of professors while Snape walked over to Hermione.

She met her Potions Master's eyes curiously. "What do you mean, I can be helpful, and that you can tell me information?" She asked, but Snape led her to a far corner of the room, then shook his head.

"I'm well aware that you and Draco have been studying the Advanced Spells and Curses book together, Ms. Granger." He said, and Hermione's eyes widened.

"How did you-"

Snape held up his hand. "I left that book for Draco. I'm aiming to turn him into a strong wizard, not that he has much further to go. But he needed to be able to have the skills high above those of his year, even later. I just did not expect him to share these spells with someone. Especially you, with all due respect." He remarked, Hermione's surprise showing in the professor's uncommon, incredibly rare act of apology.

She then shook her head. "Is...is that why those boys attacked Draco? They said that he stole something. They meant the book...They were yelling outside that Draco cursed them, but I know that they hit him first. When he ran past me, he was already bleeding, as if he had been beaten."

She hesitated, taking a deep breath. "Then as we were running down the hill, he pushed me out of the way of a spell, then another hit him. He fell, but told me to keep going as he was bound down. I didn't want to leave him…" she choked out, shaking her head. Then she raised her eyes to Snape. "The two who cursed him were-"

"Terence Higgs and Theodore Nott. I know. And they have been expelled and convicted for both assault on another student as well as use of the Unforgivable." He explained, and Hermione let out a slight sigh of relief, then she looked past the man.

"Professor...what McGonagall said...is it true that you don't know how bad it is? That you don't know what two Crucios, let alone one, might have done to him?" She asked, her voice cracking multiple times.

Snape turned his head slightly, then looked back down at the girl before him. "We do not yet have a certain idea of what might occur, but from what has happened in the past…" His voice trailed off, and Hermione's eyes widened.

"What do you mean?! What's happened in the past?!" She questioned, her chest tight, then Severus let out a short breath.

"With members of the old Order, a group of great witches and wizards, there were many who were tortured viciously with the Cruciatus curse. Some were successful in never breaking, and rose again to fight another day. However, there were some who, despite not breaking under the curse, could not withstand it any longer." He said solemnly, and Hermione paused, then her eyes grew wide.

"Wait...you can't mean...NO!" She stepped back with wide eyes, shaking her head. "NO, HE CAN'T BE!" She screamed, a number of the students from outside now slowly peeking into the infirmary.

Snape stepped forward towards her, putting his hand on her shoulder. "Ms. Granger, there is still a chance that-"

Hermione pushed his hands away, falling back against the wall, holding her head in her hands. "NO!" She sobbed, her throat closed up. "HE CAN'T DIE! HE CAN'T!" She screamed painfully.

The students near the door all sported wide eyes, some gasping and looking at each other with fear. The headmaster looked over at the crying girl, then met Snape's eye, who shook his head. Dumbledore walked over to them, then nodded at Snape.

"Thank you, Severus. But I'm sure you'll want to check on Mr. Malfoy." He said, and Snape nodded, striding over to the young, motionless boy.

Dumbledore gently placed his hand on Hermione's shoulder, then sat her down on one of the nearby cots. She wiped her eyes, shaking her head.

"What...what if he dies, Professor?" She whispered, and Dumbledore let out a deep breath as he slowly sat down beside her.

"Ms. Granger. I have seen, and this is just with my own eyes, that your love for Mr. Malfoy is stronger than any bond. He truly would do anything for you. You are well aware of that. He loves you dearly. Now it is my question to you… Do you think that he is going to leave you? That he would give up his life when he has you to live for?" He asked, then he stood up, walking away as Hermione sat with wide eyes.

Then a shout made her look up to see Harry run in, dropping next to her to wrap her in a hug. He shook his head, meeting her eyes.

"Hermione… I just...I just heard…" He glanced over at the group of Professors, then back to his friend, who sat with red eyes, sniffing back the tears. "I'm so sorry." He said wholeheartedly, taking her hand in his. "I know how much you love him."

Hermione's head snapped up to see Harry nod with a smile.

"Don't think you could hide that from your best friend." He remarked, then he smirked. "Besides. Seeing you with him in some hidden corners on the Marauders Map? I put two and two together pretty quick." He taunted quietly, and Hermione managed a small smile, hitting him upside the head gently.

"Shut up, Harry." She muttered, then hung her head. "I just…" Looking over her shoulder, a tear dripped from her chin. "I can't bear to lose him."


	11. A Wish For Christmas

**Author's Note:** I was going to wait until Christmas to publish this chapter, but I just couldn't wait. It took me a while to write, but hopefully you all like it. PLEASE leave reviews letting me know what you think.

Happy Holidays!

* * *

When Hermione and Harry left the common room, Harry noticed with sullen eyes that Hermione's head was dropped down, clenching her books tight, no joy or even excitement for learning to be found anywhere.

It had been a week since the incident, and Draco was still in the infirmary, and still unconscious. Madam Pomfrey had been working around the clock with McGonagall to try to figure out a way to help him, or even wake him.

An owl had been sent to his mother, and since she had no intentions of departing the Manor to go to the school, Narcissa asked McGonagall to keep her informed of her son's condition.

Hermione and Harry had been in to check on Draco so many times, Hermione finding time at least four times a day to visit. The first two days she had refused to leave his side, demanding that she be allowed to sleep in the infirmary in the cot beside him to keep watch on him. She had Harry bringing her the studies of the day so she could work from the hospital, but she soon found that she could not allow herself to fall behind, and decided, with much difficulty, to return to her normal studies and retire back to her dorm.

But all she ever thought about was him. He seemed so young and frail now, and every time she went to sleep she couldn't stop her thoughts from taking her to a gravestone that read the name she loved so dearly.

Hermione was broken inside. Everyone could tell. It was more than obvious. She who had never in her life neglected school work or found it boring now seemed distant and disinterested in everything. She hardly ate and hardly slept.

When she wasn't in the hospital wing, she was in the library, researching cures and whatever could help him but also studying the small book that Snape had given Draco. The book of spells. She refused to let it go to waste. She would read those pages over and over, but she always skipped over one page. The page that when the two had first found the book, Draco had cringed and explained to Hermione what had happened to him the summer prior.

Now he had to endure that pain all over again.

Hermione knew that Draco was strong. She knew that he could make it through this. At least, that's what her heart kept telling her. But the voice in her head continued to worsen her thoughts, and thus she had pushed everyone away, letting the fear control her.

Even still, when those moments did occur when she found herself in a slight high, her heart would comfort her, assuring her that Draco would wake up. That he'd be with her once more. But her main worry was not that he'd fail to wake up. It was whether he'd ever be the same.

She'd read many a book and documented the effects of the Cruciatus curse, and oftentimes, if the curse was strong enough, the victim would be torn apart inside, becoming just an empty shell of who they once were.

Hermione hoped and prayed to dear Merlin that her Draco would return to her safe and sound.

That was her one and only wish.

Having her Draco back was the only thing that she wanted for Christmas.

* * *

Blaise and Pansy sat at the Slytherin table with blank expressions, Blaise mindlessly poking at his food. He dropped his fork with a sigh, hanging his head. Pansy put her arm around him, scooting closer to him.

"I know you're worried. We all are. It...it's going to be okay, Blaise." She tried to comfort, but Blaise shook his head as he shoved her hand away.

"You don't know that." He muttered, then he looked up at the Gryffindor table to see the girl that Draco had been spending so much time with. Her eyes were red, her face defeated, her light gone. She just sat there, not even seeming to acknowledge that she was at the feast, the mountains of food before her, or her best friend trying to talk to her. She finally just stood up and walked out of the Great Hall, looking more bedraggled than Blaise or Pansy had ever seen her.

Blaise bit his lip, then stood up. Pansy grabbed his arm.

"Where are you going?" She asked, and Blaise sighed.

"I'm going to go talk to Granger. If she cares about Draco as much as I think she does, then we can sympathise for each other. I know she's scared. She needs comfort." He said, and Pansy nodded, letting go of his arm.

Blaise strode out of the Great Hall, looking up and down the corridors, then he saw the swish of a robe rounding a corner a ways down, and he ran to catch up with them. Running around the corner, he stopped when he saw the girl sitting on the floor, hugging her knees to her chest, sobbing.

Blaise bit his lip, then slowly walked over. "Granger?" He said softly, the girl's head snapping up, then her eyes widened when she saw the Slytherin crouched before her.

"What...what do you want?" She then raised her eyebrow. "Are you his friend?" She asked, and Blaise nodded.

"Yeah. I've known Draco for a long time. I'm Blaise Zabini, in case you didn't know." He let out a long breath, then sat down next to Hermione. "Look, I know you care about him. I do, too. He's almost like a brother. But...I'm scared." He murmured, making Hermione's eyes go wide.

"What?"

He nodded. "I'm scared. I don't know if he'll wake up, Granger. I know that he's been tortured by his father before, and not just with the curse." He said, making Hermione straighten up.

"What? You know about that?!" She exclaimed, and Blaise's expression turned morose.

"Yeah. I do. I also know about all the other times his father has punished him in one way or another for not following his exact orders. Draco, although he's always seemed like he's….well, I wouldn't exactly say 'happy' is the correct term, but inside he's always terrified, Granger." Blaise revealed, Hermione's eyes growing wider than dinner plates.

Blaise continued. "He's scared of what his father might do if he even steps out of line. Or at least, he always had been up until this year. Then a few weeks ago he told us that he was going to forget about his father, his name, and his family to become his own person. He's taking a huge risk, but he's determined to change." He said, and Hermione nodded.

"I know. I mean, I didn't know about the horrible things his father did to him, but I know that he's trying to change. I want to help him with that, Zabini. I want him to be able to feel free. And I think he's finally getting there." She then bit her lip as her throat started to close up.

"But...All I want now….All I want is to have him back. I care about him, and now he's…" She looked up into Blaise's brown eyes with tears running from her own.

"What do we do?" She asked, her voice cracking. Blaise sat quietly for a moment, then he put his arm around Hermione, shocking the girl, but then she leaned against him as her shoulders started to shake. Her cries echoed in the empty halls, the old stone corridors seeming more lonesome and cold than ever.

Hermione opened her eyes, turning to look out the large window at the end of the corridor. The snow falling outside, however beautiful it was, only brought pain to her as she took a shaky breath.

"It's only two days until Christmas. I thought for sure that Draco and I would be...well…" She shook her head away from the small slip as Blaise's curiosity grew. Hermione just leaned her head back against the wall. "I just want him back. I want to be able to spend Christmas with him. But...it's been two and a half weeks, Zabini. However much hope I try to give myself, it keeps dwindling away to nothing. At this point…" She stopped herself, and Blaise sighed.

"You'd rather he die than have to suffer through this?" He said without realising it, then looked down as Hermione's head snapped up, then she frowned. After a moment, she nodded very slightly, and Blaise closed his eyes.

"He's strong, but I don't know, Granger. I don't know if Draco can claw his way out of this one." He said slowly. Hermione shook her head, then stood up.

"I...I can't just sit around. I'm going to go to the infirmary, at least he'll have someone there with him on Christmas." She said, and Blaise raised his eyebrow.

"You're going to stay in the hospital for the next two days?" He wondered, and Hermione nodded.

"Yes. I won't leave him." She started down the hall, then looked over her shoulder.

"Happy Christmas, Blaise."

* * *

When Hermione walked into the infirmary, Madame Pomfrey looked up, then her gaze softened as she met the beaten eyes of the young girl.

"Miss Granger." She looked down at the boy she was tending. "Here to see Mr Malfoy?" She asked, and Hermione nodded as she sat down on the cot beside Draco's. She bit her lip as she stared at his closed eyes, his hardly breathing form. She tried to push back the tears, but they emerged anyway.

She raised her eyes to Madame Pomfrey. "Has anything changed? Do you know if he's going to wake up?" She asked the same question she had asked numerous times before. Madame Pomfrey shook her head.

"I'm afraid not. He has slightly improved over the past two days," She started, making Hermione's head raise, her chest lifting in small hope. Madame Pomfrey then frowned. "But...I don't know when he'll wake up if he does." She said softly, immediately destroying Hermione's hope.

The girl sighed, then nodded. After a moment she looked up at the nurse. "May I...may I stay here until Christmas? For the next two days, I mean. I can't leave him." She asked, and Madame Pomfrey nodded.

"Of course. I'll make your bed up." She said, and Hermione smiled slightly, standing up from the bed to sit on the edge of Draco's bed, taking his hand in hers. She felt the slow, faint pulse, and her lip quivered.

She pet his hair softly as she memorised every detail of his face, even though she already knew even the smallest marks and lines. "Don't leave me, Draco...I don't know what I'll do without you...I'm barely hanging on as it is…" She murmured, tears dripping from her chin to fall onto Draco's cheek.

Madame Pomfrey lightly touched Hermione's shoulder, and the girl turned her head. The woman smiled at her kindly.

"You can stay here, Miss Granger. I know how much you care for him." She said, and Hermione nodded. She shrugged off her robe, hugging herself tight as she sat down across from Draco, refusing to take her eyes away from him.

After what felt like hours, and long after the castle candles had been snuffed, Hermione finally laid back in bed, pulling the sheets up to hold tight. Staring at the silhouette of the boy in the cot, she felt her cheeks were wet as tears started to dampen her pillow. Turning over, she closed her eyes tight, praying for everything to be okay.

* * *

The next morning, she woke early, sitting up with a stretch, then glancing over only for her shoulders to drop as she stared at the young boy next to her.

She felt helpless. She had felt helpless for almost three weeks now. And today was Christmas Eve. Today and tomorrow were supposed to be days of joy and celebration, but she found in her heart absolutely nothing to celebrate about.

She forced herself to get up, pulling on her robes. She walked up to the Gryffindor dorm, went into her room quietly so as not to wake the others, then grabbed her scarf, mittens, and hat, leaving her school robes as she wrapped herself in her warm jacket. Walking back down the many staircases, she made her way outside, where she found it snowing lightly, the day already bright. She stared up at the light grey clouds that covered the sky, the blue hidden behind it.

She sighed, then walked to the owlery, the snow increasing her mood slightly. The beauty of it was something that had stunned Hermione since she was a little girl, and it still did today, despite the despair that held her.

Walking up the stone steps, when she went into the owlery she saw the great Eagle Owl immediately. Walking over to Xavier, she sighed, reaching her hand out. She knew that Draco's owl would not attack her. He'd met her before. Xavier let her stroke his feathers, cooing as he tilted his head. Hermione bit her lip.

"I'm sorry Draco hasn't been to see you...but I'm here to take care of you. Don't worry. I...I'll take care of Draco too. As much as I can."

Xavier cawed, and Hermione held out her arm, letting the huge owl step onto it. She walked outside with him, then lifted her arm, letting Xavier spread his great brown and white feathered wings. He pushed off, then soared into the sky, letting himself glide on the wind. Hermione watched with a smile as she walked down the steps to sit on a large rock, staring up at the bird.

He flew gracefully, the snowflakes around him bringing out the beautiful brown patterns in his wings and body even more. He rode the wind freely, and Hermione felt herself growing happier. Just being able to have a part of Draco with her, even just his owl, it made her feel better.

Just at that thought, Xavier swooped down to land next to her, then he gently pushed her arm with his head, letting out a small chirping noise. Hermione smiled, stroking his head softly.

"Thank you." She said, sighing as she closed her eyes. Looking up at the sky, parts of the blue started to show with the sun rays splitting the clouds.

Hermione blinked back the few tears in her eyes, then a voice made her head turn.

"Hermione?"

Harry walked over to her as Hedwig landed on his shoulder. He met her eyes, the snowflakes dotting his messy hair. Hermione lent him a small smile.

"Happy Christmas Eve, Harry." She said, and Harry nodded. Looking up at the sky, he let out a breath.

"I know this is hard for you, Hermione. And I know that I'm the only one who knows about you and Draco being together, so I really do understand how much this has been affecting you. But you're not alone." He said, finally turning his head back to her. "I'm here for you." He said as he sat down.

Xavier and Hedwig cooed at each other, then accepted each other's presence. Harry nodded at Xavier.

"Draco's owl likes you?" He asked, and Hermione nodded.

"He's a sweet owl. Besides, if…." Her voice faltered for a moment. "...If Draco doesn't wake up, he'll need someone to take care of him." She barely said, making Harry's throat tighten. He put his arm around Hermione, then hugged her tight.

"It's going to be okay, Hermione. I know it is. I can feel it." He said, and Hermione nodded into his shoulder.

"I'm trying to have hope, Harry. I'm really trying. Draco is my everything, and I'm just afraid that if I lose him, I'll lose myself." She shook her head. "I just can't let him go." Her voice shook, and Harry leaned his head on top of hers, feeling the cold snow that had collected in spots on her knit hat.

"I know." He whispered as he rubbed Hermione's back. Hedwig and Xavier both took to the sky, soaring around in the still falling snow. Harry watched them for a moment, then closed his eyes, hugging Hermione tighter. "I know."

* * *

After the pair spent an hour or two talking and letting the owls fly free, Hermione finally decided to go back to be with Draco. She let Xavier back to the owlery, his screeching protests making her sigh.

She slowly walked back to the castle, the just fallen snow making everything seem fresh and new, the world silent. She tucked her hands in her pockets, wishing that warm hand was holding hers as they would have walked together.

She reached the infirmary, brushing the snow off of her shoulders as she walked in. She raised her eyebrow when she saw Madame Pomfrey fussing over Draco, and Hermione immediately ran over.

"What's wrong? Is he okay?" She questioned, but Madame Pomfrey met the girl's eyes with a smile.

"Calm down, Miss Granger. He seems to be improving. His colour is much better than yesterday, his breathing is getting back to normal, and even his whole being seems to be brighter." She informed, and Hermione's light shone a little more.

"So...he's getting better?" She asked with a crack in her voice. Madame Pomfrey nodded, and Hermione fell back onto her bed with a sigh.

Madame Pomfrey put her hand on the girl's shoulder.

"Miss Granger, I will watch over Mr Malfoy. Why don't you go get something to eat. It is Christmas Eve. The warm eggnog will be out, and it would do you some good to get out in the castle again." She said, and Hermione hesitated for a moment, then nodded.

She stood and started out of the infirmary when she saw someone standing in the doorway, seeming to be waiting for...her?

As she drew closer, she saw it was Blaise Zabini, and the Slytherin smiled at her when she met his eye.

"Hello, Granger." He said, receiving a slight nod from her. He looked over her shoulder. "How's he doing?" He asked, and Hermione then smiled.

"He's getting better, Blaise. He's better than he was yesterday, and Madame Pomfrey said overall he just seems to be coming back." She replied, and Blaise grinned.

"That's good. Join me in the Great Hall?" He offered, and Hermione nodded. They walked to the Great Hall together, finding that not that many students were there. Quite a few had gone home for the holidays, leaving only a small amount left.

They both sat down at the middle of one of the tables, Blaise starting for the freshly baked cinnamon rolls while Hermione slowly took a sip of eggnog. She looked up at the magnificently decorated tree, at least thirty feet tall. Beautiful tinsel wrapped around it and glowing candles hovered on scattered branches. Snow fell from the enchanted ceiling of the Great Hall, matching that which sparkled on the fir of the tree.

She smiled at the warmth of the room, the roaring fire to the side of the room providing an occasional crackle of sparks. The hundreds of candles that floated above the tables gave a nice light, and Hermione closed her eyes as she smelled the sweet scent of Treacle Tarts and fresh cocoa.

Blaise glanced to the side at her, then grinned when he saw her smile. "Hey." He said, grabbing her attention. Hermione raised her eyebrow, and Blaise smiled kindly.

"Happy Christmas Eve." He spoke, and Hermione nodded with a small smile.

"To you as well, Blaise. I don't know why, but I just have a really good feeling about it, even though...even though Draco isn't here." She said, and Blaise sighed as he put down his goblet.

"You really do care about him, don't you?" He asked, and Hermione gave him a shocked look.

"Why else do you think I've been spending all my time in the infirmary. I have to look after him!" She exclaimed, then she took a breath to settle herself down. "He needs someone to care for him, Blaise. I'm happy to be that someone. If it means making him happy and seeing him smile, then that's a gift right there." She said, then turned her head with a smile.

"Draco is lucky to have a friend like you, Blaise. You care for him as well."

The Slytherin boy smirked. "Only enough that I'm willing to put up with him." He remarked, and the two started laughing.

Hermione felt all pain wash away, and for the first time since Draco's injury, she felt truly happy.

* * *

After a long time of talking about Draco, their studies, and Christmas, Blaise and Hermione parted ways, Hermione returning to the infirmary. She sat down on her bed, pulling one of her many books from her bag to read. Glancing over, she smiled as she reached and stroked Draco's hair gently.

"I'll always be here for you, Draco," She murmured, then she sat back with her book in hand, opening it to enjoy for the rest of the night. She looked out the window to see it still snowing in the evening light, and she smiled at the peacefulness. An hour or two later, she finally put down her book as the candles started to be put out, laying back and closing her eyes.

Taking a deep breath, she imagined having her precious boy next to her, holding her tight, and she opened her eyes to look over at the boy laid across from her.

She smiled in the dark, reaching to take his hand.

"Happy Christmas, Draco."

* * *

Hermione woke to the faint sound of carolling and the bright morning light of snow.

She also felt a hand on her shoulder, and she blinked back the tiredness in her eyes.

"I'm getting up, Madam Pomfrey-"

The hand squeezed her shoulder, and she turned over only for her eyes to grow wider than she ever thought. She stared into the faint grey-blue eyes that smiled at her, then the blonde rubbed her cheek softly.

The girl stared, unable to form any words except one that barely escaped her lips.

"Draco…" She uttered, and a tear ran down his cheek as he took her hand.

"Happy Christmas, Hermione."


	12. A Wish Come True

**Author's Note:** So I waited to publish this one until Christmas Eve because, well, I wanted it to sort of be a present. I knew that I would be far too busy tomorrow, but I will always find time for Christmas spirit.

Happy Christmas to everyone and Happy Holidays!

* * *

 **The sun shone** through the window, casting a white light from the falling snow outside onto the two young students in the infirmary.

Hermione stared, speechless, at the blonde who sat before her. Then seconds later she flung herself onto him, wrapping him in a tight hug as she cried into his shoulder.

"Draco! Dear Merlin, you're okay! I thought I'd lost you…" She sobbed, and Draco closed his eyes as he gently hugged Hermione back, trying not to flinch in pain.

"I'm sorry...You had to go through that...But you know I'd never leave you, 'Mione. Never." He said quietly, breathing in the sweet smell of her hair. He looked up at the Christmas wreaths hanging in the infirmary, then out to the snow falling. He had said Happy Christmas to Hermione, and he was surprised that he had known it truly was Christmas day.

Hermione sighed, then pulled back with a teary-eyed smile. "This is the best Christmas present I could have ever received." She sniffled, and Draco grinned, then he looked around.

"I...I know it's Christmas, but...was I really...was I really, well, ' _gone'_ for that long? It must have been-"

"It's been three and a half weeks, Draco," Hermione stated, making Draco's eyes go took his hand. "Everyone's been worried about you. Especially Blaise. He and I talked a lot yesterday. He cares for you, you know." She said, and Draco closed his eyes with a sigh.

He couldn't believe how long Hermione had to deal without him. He knew she was a strong witch, and he wasn't worried about her failing or anything. He just cared about how hard it must have been for her, worried sick about him. He then realised something.

"Hermione, what happened? Why...why was I in the infirmary in the first place?" He wondered, making Hermione's face turn to confusion.

"You don't remember?" She asked, and Draco shook his head. She bit her lip. "You were on your way to meet me to study, like always, but Terence Higgs and Theodore Nott stopped you. They started bullying you, demanding to know what you took, meaning the book. They wanted to know. Higgs got mad when you wouldn't tell him, then he started to beat you up." She relayed, Draco's eyes wide. She continued. "You broke free and hexed them both to try to get away. That's when you came and got me in the courtyard, running like you were terrified. They started to chase us, and as we were headed towards the footbridge, a spell hit you and knocked you forward. You told me to keep going, and I did. I then heard from another student what happened."

Her voice began to shake. "Higgs and Nott….Nott tried to get you to talk, and he even tried to Legilimens you, but apparently, you are a very skilled Occlumens…?" She questioned, and Draco nodded slightly. Hermione went on. "They were frustrated they couldn't get you to talk, then Higgs suggested using...the Cruciatus curse on you." She said, and Draco's eyes snapped open, all of what happened suddenly painfully coming back to him.

"Higgs cast it on me…" He started, making Hermione look up. "It...it was worse than when my father cursed me...then Nott started too, and it was the most excruciating pain I had ever felt in my life...My head was pounding, I couldn't hear anything, then everything went black." He murmured, turning his head to Hermione with wide eyes. "How...how did I manage to survive _two_ Cruciatus curses?! I thought that at that level, a person's body would give up-"

Hermione took his hand, feeling his elevated pulse. "Draco, even the professors, not even _Dumbledore_ , know how you managed to survive it. Blaise and I were worried that when, or if, you woke up, you wouldn't be the same person. I read about people being cursed that badly, and they became empty shells of who they were. I was just so scared that…" she felt tears in her eyes. "I was terrified that I would lose my Draco. The one man I love more than anything in the world." She whimpered, then she felt Draco's arms around her.

"Hermione, I'm not going anywhere. Don't worry. I'll always be here for you." He said, and Hermione's spirits lifted. She met Draco's eyes, and the two shared a gaze for a minute, then in a flash, Hermione's lips were on Draco's in a passionate kiss, the boy holding her tight as they fell back on the bed, neither having ever experienced a more loving or sincere embrace. Draco's hands rubbed Hermione's back while her fingers tugged at his hair, still locked in a perfect kiss. When they finally pulled away, the two met smiling eyes as Draco stroked Hermione's cheek.

"Should we go to the Great Hall to get something to eat? I'm famished." He said, and Hermione smirked.

"I wonder why?" She remarked, upon which Draco shoved her away.

"Okay, Miss Smart Ass. Give me a minute to get dressed. I know however much you'd want to see me naked, I would appreciate some privacy." He said with a sexy smirk, making Hermione's face flush. She stood up with a large exhale, then walked out behind the curtain, Draco watching her with a snicker and wide grin.

He grabbed his pants from the chair next to him, pulling off the baggy pyjama-like pants he wore. He grunted as he stepped into the slacks, pulling them to his waist then buttoning the top. Groaning in pain as he lifted his short sleeve over his head and slipped his arms into his long white dress shirt, he buttoned the front slowly, then tucked the bottom into his slacks.

After a moment of tying his tie and adjusting it to meet his perfect standards, Draco bent down, cursing quietly, to lace his shiny black shoes, then he finally stood up with a hard breath.

Glancing to the side as he pulled a sweater vest over his shirt, he smiled as he picked up his wand, tucking it in his pocket. He then walked out from the small secluded space to find Hermione waiting for him by the door. She smiled in joy when she saw his bright grin, and he took her hand as he reached her.

Hermione raised her eyebrow as they exited the infirmary. "You know, what you said about me wanting to see-" She stopped herself, then shook her head. "I have no idea where you got that idea from, but that's absolutely ludicrous." She said, and Draco snickered. He glanced at her, then flicked his eyebrows up with a smirk.

"Sure it is, 'Mione. Sure it is." He mocked, flinching when the girl elbowed him. He gritted his teeth.

"Bloody Hell, Hermione! You know, I'm still aching. If you want me to actually recover, it's not very helpful if you're causing more pain." He muttered, and Hermione's eyes turned soft.

"I'm sorry." She stood on her tiptoes to kiss his cheek, then dropped down. "Come on. I'm sure everyone will be so glad to see you're okay."

The two walked and talked down the corridor, the halls empty and echoey. As they neared the Great Hall, they could hear the significantly decreased chatter of the lessened number of students.

Draco took a deep breath as Hermione squeezed his hand, then they rounded the corner to the brightly lit Great Hall.

The grand Christmas tree stood at the end, decorated with thousands of twinkling lights and shimmering garland. Spots of white dotted the branches from the enchanted ceiling's faint snowfall. A huge fire roared in the fireplace on the side of the hall, and hundreds of candles hung in the air above the tables, lighting the area.

Draco let out a deep breath as he looked around, then he saw one person lift their head from the conversation they were having, then their eyes went wide.

"DRACO!" They yelled, and in turn, a number of heads immediately snapping up with enlarged eyes.

Draco's smile grew when he saw it was his friend Blaise who had yelled and had jumped up and was now running towards him. Blaise threw his arms around Draco, making the boy gasp with a hard ' _whoof'_ , then Draco laughed, patting Blaise's back.

Blaise sighed. "Blimey, mate, I thought I'd never have to deal with your rubbish again!" He said, and Draco pushed him back with a raised eyebrow.

"Y'know, usually that's a good thing, Blaise." He stated, then he shook his head. "Nah, you'll have me around for a while yet." He said, then he felt Hermione squeeze his hand. She nodded down towards the tables.

"Come on. I thought you said you were hungry." She smiled, and Draco nodded.

The trio walked down to the group of students, where Draco was immediately greeted with multiple statements of 'I'm so glad you're okay!' and 'Merlin, how are you alive?!'.

Draco sat back, leaning on Blaise's shoulder as he smiled, taking a long sip of eggnog. Shaking his head, he glanced to the side, meeting his friend's eyes. "Blaise, I have to be honest, I still have no idea how I managed to survive that. I mean, I should have died." He said quietly, and his friend frowned.

"I know. But it was bloody jammy that you made it out of this." He then glanced up at Hermione talking to Potter. "She never left you alone, you know that?" He said, and Draco lifted his gaze to find what Blaise was looking at, although he already knew well what he meant. But he couldn't just say why. He couldn't let their secret slip.

He raised his eyebrow. "Yeah?" He wondered, and Blaise nodded heavily.

"Oh yeah. She found time every single day. For the first couple of days, she wouldn't even leave your side. Guess you two really _do_ have a connection or something." He remarked, and Draco smiled as Potter and Hermione both looked up.

"Yeah. I guess we do." He felt his cheeks grow hot as their eyes met, and his smile became humbled. "I don't know what I'd do without her."


	13. Year's End

**_Author's note:_** _I am so sorry that I haven't posted in...jeez, how long has it been?! But I've had so many things to worry about in college, but I will try my best to find times to post. I needed to wrap up this year, but there will be many things happening next year (not my college year, the Harry Potter school years) that will be coming out. I apologise for taking so long, but I hope all of you continue to support me and thank you so much to those of you who have._

* * *

 _3 MONTHS LATER_

It had been a successful rest of the year. Both Draco and Hermione had continued to study the book, and although the spells would be useful, they vowed not to use them. They decided that, considering they were well beyond their years, that it would be unjust.

They had studied in their classes together, and both had become considerably advanced in their year.

It was the end of term, and to their surprise, no one but Harry knew about their relationship. Not that they were complaining. They would tell people when they were ready.

And so they sat on the last night in the Great Hall with everyone else, eating the lavish meal and conversing with their friends. Draco and Blaise were joking around, and Hermione and Harry were talking about what next year would hold. Weasley was drawn away. He hadn't exactly grown any closer to the two. In fact, it seemed like he had grown further apart. But Hermione didn't exactly notice. She was too busy with Draco.

She looked up from the Gryffindor table to find Draco's gaze meet hers. She smiled as he grinned, then a voice at the head of the Great Hall broke their stare.

Dumbledore stood at the podium, looking out over all the students.

"Another year has come and gone at Hogwarts, and I must say that the O.W.L. testings were very impressive this year. I feel the need to congratulate the two students who scored perfectly on every test." He said, and murmurs travelled through the hall. Dumbledore smiled.

"Hermione Granger and Draco Malfoy, I award you both fifty house points for your tremendous academic excellence." He stated, and Draco's eyes went wide, then snapped over to Hermione, whose face was flushed as an embarrassed but proud smile slowly crept onto her face. Cheers from all houses erupted, both students and professors alike. Blaise clapped Draco on the back with a grin.

"Nice job, mate."

Draco smirked, running his hand through his hair sheepishly, although his pride was through the roof.

Dumbledore called the student body back, then raised his hands. "It would seem that it is time to award the House Cup." He called, sweeping his gaze around. "In fourth place, with 412 points, Hufflepuff!"

A chorus of clapping followed, and even though they were in last place, the Hufflepuffs were smiling.

Dumbledore waved his hand. "In third place, with 445 points, Ravenclaw!"

The claps continued, the Ravenclaws slightly less enthusiastic.

"And a tie for first place! Gryffindor and Slytherin both with 497 points!" He called, and shouts and clapping continued, louder than before.

"But…" Dumbledore started, and everyone went silent immediately. "I do have a few last minute points to award."

Murmurs spread through the Great Hall, then every eye was looking up at the Headmaster.

"For the gift of incredible kindness, admirable academics, and the strongest care I have seen in many years, I award ten points…." He paused with a smile. "To Miss Hermione Granger."

All eyes turned on the girl, who sat with wide eyes and an even wider mouth, then Potter shook her with a hug and she started laughing.

The Gryffindor house erupted with cheers while the Slytherins sat quiet, however, some did start to clap. Draco grinned widely, staring at his girl being hugged by so many of the Gryffindors.

"Gryffindor wins the House Cup!" Dumbledore clapped his hands, then the hanging banners swept back, their colour changing to red.

The other houses all cheered, throwing their hats in the air. Draco shook his head, elbowed Blaise, then they both stood up and threw their hats, ignoring the stares they got from some of the other Slytherins.

Hermione looked over and met Draco's eye with a proud smile, smiling as she saw the care in Draco's eyes. She then turned back to her fellow Gryffindors to celebrate.

* * *

Draco sighed as he fixed his black tie, tightening it as he walked down the platform beside the train. He looked at his pocket watch, then let out a breath as he looked up at the gleaming red train, the sun glinting off of the top.

Then a pair of arms suddenly wrapped around him, and he startled, then turned around with a smile to meet the brown eyes that looked up at him.

"You know, you could have just called my name," he said to Hermione, but she shook her head with a grin.

"Where's the fun in that? Besides, I wanted to give you one last hug." She said, and Draco smiled, then held the girl close, leaning his head atop hers. Hermione pulled back and met his grey eyes. "Promise me you'll write." She said, and Draco shrugged.

"I'll try. If father finds out where I'm sending letters and who they're going to, he'll kill me." He stated, but then he tucked a strand of Hermione's hair behind her ear. "But I'll gladly risk it for you."

Hermione took his hand, then they both looked up as the whistle of the train blared from the engine, the steam pouring from the top. Draco turned his head back, then he leaned down to kiss her forehead.

"I'll see you next year." He said, and Hermione nodded. They stood still for a second, then Hermione suddenly reached up and pulled Draco down, pressing her lips on his. She rubbed his hair as his hand held her back, then they pulled away with a smile.

"Next year, then." She whispered, and Draco smiled, then he nodded towards the train.

"Go. Your friends will be wondering where you are." He said, and Hermione squeezed his hand one last time before running down to one of the open doors. Draco watched her go, then stepped inside the closest carriage, making his way down to where Blaise sat.

His friend met his eye. "Saying goodbye to Granger?" He wondered curiously, and Draco nodded.

"We were just agreeing that we're going to continue studying together next year." He replied, then he leaned back, looking out the window. "It feels odd going home, don't you think?" He asked Blaise, who shook his head.

"It's the same as every year."

Draco shook his head slowly, watching as the train started to chug away, the platform drawing further and further away. "Not for me. For some reason, this year it feels like I'm being dragged away from home."

He then closed his eyes with a smile, considering all that happened this year.

Although there were some terrible memories, the most prominent were spent with the girl he loved with all his heart. And he couldn't wait to see her again. She had become everything he had ever wanted.

Someone who cared about him, and someone who he would do anything for.

Someone who meant the world to him.

Hermione Granger.


End file.
